Typhoon, Rafale, Gripen NG are not and never will be fully 5th generation fighter because their platform is not and there are no amount of upgrade that will change that. Silent Eagle or Silent Hornet will no more be 5th Gen anyday soon. IMO Pak-Fa and J-20 are going to be a little better than a possible Silent Hornet: close to 5th Gen. Russia is beleived to be 20 to 30 years late in many area of technology which is why they have decided to buy some western equipment as part of their modernisation effort (DCN’s BPC, Thales’s infrared sensor and communication suite, Israeli UAV etc…). China still need Russia’s help in many advanced area so the day is still in the future when China’s products are going to be anything but copy.

It’s a arm race’s principle that if your neighbour says that he has a 5th Gen fighter you need to say you have one too. It’s going to be a long time for Russia and China to have capable and fully mature 5 Gen which is why Russia is planning to buy quite a lot of SU-35 and China is just introducing the J-17.

Uh China is not introducing the JF-17, that’s the Pakistanis. Russia is now sourcing defence electronics from Chinese contractors as well. Certainly there are areas China can continue to learn from Russia, but the days when everything Chinese is a copy is over.

More fan art.

If, China wants to be a Super Power. It will have to match the US, Russia, and even India on the same level. It’s my opinion it can only do so my competing on every level. Especially, Military Hardware……:cool:

You mean it also has to invade Afghanistan? :dev2:

Russia selling PAK-FA doesn’t exactly put it in the same league as the USA does it?

We will have to disagree………..Advance Technology and Manufacturing is the name of the game. With Automotive, Electronics, and Defense Sectors leading the way.

Actually I don’t disagree. The defense sector is important to Chinese industry. It’s just that it has no need to export it’s best wares to fund it’s military industrial complex.

I don’t see why China should want to sell this thing. It’s not like they need the foreign currency to fund the project. What do they gain that could possibly justify the risk of it being examined by people they don’t want?

China built the JXX to give it an ace up it’s sleeve, just as the US intends to keep the F-22 close to it’s vest. I’m sure some countries will be very interested if China offered, but that’s not likely for a very long time.

Unfortunately we don’t know the actual length of the J-10 either. Eyeing it relative to the Flanker and J-10, I’m convinced JXX < 22.0 meters.

You know that China is Iran’s best ally and Iran would gladly sell the Chinese every drop of oil it can pump. And Chinese tankers carrying Iranian oil back to China would be allowed to pass unscathed. Meanwhile, the Iranians continue their embargo as a way to destroy the finances of the Sunni enemy (Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE). That Europe’s economy would be harmed is a secondary but real effect.

I call BS. According to diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks the Chinese were cooperative with Iranian sanctions and very much concerned by Iranian intentions. Why should anyone be surprised? China buys way more oil from Saudi Arabia and the other Sunni Gulf states than Iran, and it’s to those suppliers China goes hat in hand.

When the F-22 was designed, it had to be a good dogfighter with a gun no less because the brass didn’t want to take the chance that visual range engagements are a thing of the past. Since then the lesson learned is that indeed BVR does seem to be as it’s hyped up to be. The F-22 never had to engage a legacy fighter in dogfight unless it wanted to. Furthermore F-22 pilots complain that they would be even more dominant with greater internal missile loads.

It then seems quite logical to design the JXX as a bigger missile ship than the F-22. It’s internal bays are probably designed with larger next generation ramjet missles like the the PL-21 in mind, rather than limited to petite missiles like the AMRAAM.

It also makes perfect sense to design the JXX as a strike fighter since China doesn’t have a JSF or B-2 to carry out the bomb role. JXX is not a specialized air supremacy fighter like the F-22. It is most likely a true multirole fighter. Capable of carrying larger and more numerous air-to-air missiles, as well as having a super F-35 role.

Having an all in one capability makes sense for two reasons. One being a common platform would be cheaper. Had China gone for a F-22 like specialist they may not be able to afford to build a significant number. Second, as a Flanker operator, PLAAF is already used to having a large fighter with multi-mission capability. JXX is designed to replace the multirole Flankers, just as the F-22 is designed to replace the pure air supremacy F-15C.