Current Lockheed test pilot says China J-20 stealth fighter will outclass US fourth gen fighters and threaten carrier groups as China narrows stealth tech gap

Nate “Buster” Jaros is a retired USAF fighter pilot with over 2,000 hours in F-16 C/D/CM and T-38A/C aircraft and over 500 hours in General Aviation aircraft. He is currently a Test Pilot, Instructor Pilot, and LO SME with Lockheed Martin Skunkworks.

Nate provides a detailed review of China J-20 stealth fighter.
Several other analysts have said that the the J-20 is not a fifth generation fighter.

Nate says China will have a fifth generation fighter, and its development of the J-20 (amongst other fifth gen platforms) is significant.

* the J-20 is also called the Black Eagle
* the J-20 looks kind of like an F-22 Raptor
* It basically is a copy as China stole TERAbytes of F-35 data and they pieced together the basic tenets of stealth technology and apply them to its modern aircraft designs.
* the J-20 is that it is a single seat, twin engine, canard/delta design, stealthy fighter platform. There are just four copies being tested right now, with fully operational fighters predicted to be ready by 2018.

The Black Eagle has two Saturn AL-31 engines producing about 30,000 lbs of thrust each. With the possibility of more powerful Xian WS-15 engines currently in development, those are speculated to produce 44,000 lbs of thrust each. The F-22 has roughly 35,000 lbs of thrust per engine.

New engines will make the J-20 better in a dogfight.

The Black Eagle is big. It weighs an estimated 43,000 lbs empty / 80,000 lbs MTOW (Max Takeoff Weight). The Raptor weighs in at 43,000 lbs empty / 83,000 lbs MTOW. Nate believes that the J-20 will be a bit heavier than this, just based on size alone.

It is predicted that the J-20 will carry four to six long range missiles and possibly two short range heat-seeking missiles as well, all inside internal bays. Very ‘Raptor-like.’ The F-22 carries six long range missiles and two heat-seeking missiles, and air-to-ground options too. The Raptor also has a gun, the J-20 does not…we think.

Researchers speculate that the J-20 will have similar performance and agility as a Raptor, some think it will be a fighter/bomber only. Nate believes the J-20 will be more of a “night one” strike asset, with the ability to quickly penetrate enemy defenses, deliver weapons, and safely retreat. It’s not going to be an overly capable dogfighter.

The Black Eagle will be China’s best plane. It will be able to sneak in and deliver some crippling blows to any nearby adversary.

Armed with capable air-to-air missiles, and pilots trained in LO tactics, it’s enough the outclass any US fourth generation fighter while BVR (Beyond Visual Range) or provide highly capable strike and standoff to China’s leaders.

SOURCE- Fighter Sweep

2 thoughts on “Current Lockheed test pilot says China J-20 stealth fighter will outclass US fourth gen fighters and threaten carrier groups as China narrows stealth tech gap”

  1. I chuckle a bit every time I see an article concerned about the dog-fighting characteristics of stealth aircraft. If they ever get into a dog fight they are doing it wrong. IMHO.

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