CHINA/ HONG KONG – China’s air force is set to officially debut its new stealth fighter jet, the J-35A, giving observers the first look at a highly anticipated asset that adds to the country’s fast growing military capabilities. The fighter, an image of which was released during an air force press conference Tuesday, will appear at an air show in the southern city of Zhuhai next week, officials said.

The development of the jet is widely seen as part of Beijing’s bid to match the United States’ stealth fighter capabilities – as it pushes to modernize its armed forces and assert its military might in Asia. The J-35A is “designed mainly for air combat operations and can also conduct air-to-surface attack,” according to a report from a Chinese military-affiliated outlet. If the aircraft is commissioned into operation, it would make China the second country after the US to have two types of stealth fighter jets, according to experts cited by Chinese state media. China’s J-20 stealth fighter entered service in 2017, officials said at the time.

Stealth fighters are those that are designed to evade radar and other monitoring to conduct missions without being detected or intercepted. The J-35 is likely to be designed as a series and may also be used as carrier-based aircraft in the future, Chinese military expert Li Li told state broadcaster CCTV. This would “greatly improve the overall strength of China’s sea and air combat,” she said. The fighter’s debut follows what analysts at Janes global open-source intelligence firm have described as China’s “bolstering” of its forward theater commands with additional J-20s. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force between July 2023 and this June inducted more than 70 J-20s, bringing the force’s operational fleet up to approximately 195, according to a Janes report published earlier this year. It’s not clear when the new J-35A fighter would be commissioned into military use and where the fighters would be deployed. (BBC)

Photo: The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force will officially debut its J-35A fighter jet next week.  (Chen Yang/People’s Liberation Army)…[+]