Chinese fighter jet hits bird, bursts into flames on runway.

A Chinese J-15 fighter jet caught fire after striking a bird during takeoff, but the pilot managed to land the aircraft safely.

Firefighters extinguish a fire emanating from the engine of a J-15 fighter jet. Photo: Weibo.

A J-15 fighter jet from the 10th Fighter Regiment, 4th Naval Air Division of China, struck a bird just minutes after takeoff, causing an engine fire and forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing. The incident occurred on August 16 during a training flight led by Colonel Yuan Wei, deputy regimental commander, Livejournal reported.

Colonel Yuan stated that the area surrounding the airport was densely populated, making it impossible for him to dispose of weapons and fuel when he discovered the aircraft in distress. The J-15, fully fueled, made an emergency landing much more difficult. However, Yuan still managed to land successfully on the runway and safely exit the aircraft, while the J-15 suffered significant damage to its engine and left fuselage.

The Shenyang J-15 fighter jet was developed based on the design of the Soviet Su-33 carrier-based fighter. China is believed to have purchased this aircraft from Ukraine in 2001, and subsequently copied the technology to produce the J-15 series for use on aircraft carriers.

The J-15 carrier-based fighter jet has a similar appearance to the Su-33, but its electronics are entirely Chinese-developed, inherited from the J-11B version, which is a copy of the Russian Su-27SK. Experts from the Russian Institute for Strategic and Technological Analysis (CAST) believe that the J-15 has more modern capabilities than the original thanks to its many advanced electronic systems and smart weapons.

According to VNE