Faux fighter jets in the Chinese air force

To achieve its ambition of building a world-class military, China has acquired or stolen many foreign technologies to manufacture its own weapons, including fighter jets. This method helps China skip the time-consuming and expensive research and development stage and still possess a "world-class" air force, according toPopular Mechanics.

Chengdu J-10

In the 1980s, the US and Israel cooperated to build a 4th generation multi-role fighter called Lavi, based on the General Dynamics F-16 fighter platform. However, due to the high cost, the US withdrew from the project when the Lavi fighter was not yet completed.

A few years after the Lavi project ended, US officials were surprised to discover that Israel had transferred the project's development plan to China, giving the country access to the technologies used to develop the F-16 fighter. On this basis, China developed the Chengdu J-10 fighter with an appearance and many features similar to the F-16.

The J-10 fighter has outstanding advantages over older fighters in the Chinese air force and is gradually becoming an important force contributing significantly to improving the combat capability of this force.

The J-10 isn’t the only Chinese fighter that shares elements with the F-16, but it’s the closest it’s ever come to a true F-16 clone. The Chinese air force received the latest upgrade of the J-10 in 2017, which features a phased array radar, advanced fire control radar, and lightweight composite parts that will keep the J-10 in service for decades to come.

Shenyang J-11 and Shenyang J-16

When the Soviet Union fell into crisis in the late 1980s, China seized the opportunity to buy the production line of Sukhoi Su-27 fighters, which were developed to counter American jet fighters such as the Grumman F-14 Tomcat. The Su-27 possessed modern electronics and control systems, completely different from China's older fighters.

Moscow initially wanted to sell only the MiG fighter design to Beijing, but economic difficulties forced them to transfer the Su-27 production line. China quickly set up its own Su-27 production line, then improved the original Su-27 design and produced the Shenyang J-11 fighter.

After purchasing some new technologies for the Su-27 from Russia in 2000, China combined them with its own domestically developed technologies to create the Shenyang J-16 fighter, which is considered a modified and upgraded version of the Su-27.

Shenyang J-15

The Shenyang J-15 serves as China's main carrier-based fighter. China initially planned to buy the entire Sukhoi Su-33 carrier-based fighter production line, similar to the Su-27 production line deal, but the Soviet Union refused to provide part of the Su-33's design secrets.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, China purchased a Su-33 prototype codenamed T-10K-3 from Ukraine and completely dismantled it to study the structure, function and operation of this aircraft.

On this basis, China manufactured the J-15 carrier-based fighter model with a similar design to the Su-33 along with some improvements such as lightweight composite materials.

Technically, the J-15 fighter can be compared to the American McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle interceptor, even better in speed, payload and flight ceiling. Many experts believe that the J-15 is capable of winning air battles with the F-15.

But the J-15's capabilities are hampered by China's current carrier-based ski-jump system, which allows the J-15 to carry fewer weapons.

China is said to be working on an electromagnetic catapult for carrier-based fighters, similar to the one on the new US Ford-class aircraft carriers, but it is likely that the J-15 will be retired before this catapult is developed.

CASC Caihong-4

The appearance of the Caihong-4 (CH-4) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developed by China makes many people believe that this UAV model is a copy of the US General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper UAV, although there is no specific evidence.

The CH-4 can carry fewer weapons than the MQ-9, despite having similar flight time and capabilities, proving that the engine system of the Chinese UAV model is less powerful than the American UAV.

China has sought to overcome this weakness with its own domestic research and development program and launched a new generation UAV called the CH-5.

FC-1 Xiaolong/PAC JF-17 Thunder

In the 1960s, China acquired the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 fighter production line from the Soviet Union and produced the Chengdu J-7 fighter. China then cooperated with Pakistan to build a new fighter based on the J-7 to counter another Mikoyan-Gurevich fighter, the MiG-29.

Thanks to the Lavi program purchased from Israel, China created the CAC FC-1 Xiaolong/PAC JF-17 Thunder, a "hybrid" fighter between the F-16 and the MiG-21.

The FC-1/JF-17 fighter has the MiG-21's characteristic delta wings, while the nose and tail are almost identical to the F-16. The latest version of the FC-1/JF-17 is equipped with an in-flight refueling system, uses many composite materials and is equipped with electronic control technology.

Chengdu J-20

China's first fifth-generation fighter, the Chengdu J-20, is considered a copy of the American Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. A Chinese citizen named Su Bin stole the F-22 Raptor's design from Lockheed Martin and transferred it to China. Su Bin is serving a 46-year prison sentence in the United States.

Although these two fighter models have many similarities, China's lack of technological foundation for manufacturing stealth paint and materials and the design of the J-20's additional canard wings have led many experts to believe that the J-20 has less stealth capabilities than the F-22.

Other experts warn that China may continue to improve the J-20 and produce more powerful variants. The US stopped producing the F-22 in 2011 with fewer than 200 aircraft, but China will continue to produce large numbers of J-20s for many years to come.

Shenyang J-31

Information about Lockheed Martin's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter development program was also transferred to China by Su Bin and became the basis for the country to develop the Shenyang J-31 fighter.

The J-31 fighter is said to have a greater range and payload than the F-35. It is likely that the J-31 will replace the role of the J-15 carrier-based fighter, which often encounters problems.

Similar to the J-20 fighter, the J-31 fighter's capabilities are limited because China has not yet mastered the technology to manufacture paint and stealth materials. The J-31's design is considered a combination of the F-22 and F-35, making the Chinese fighter lighter and more flexible than the American prototype.

Some experts say that China's J-31 is not yet equipped with a data link system like the US F-35 fighter. This system turns the F-35 into a data center and enhances its attack range beyond the horizon.

Nguyen Tien