China testing stealth fighter jet J-35 for its 3rd aircraft carrier

Beijing: China is testing a new stealth fighter jet called J-35 to be deployed on its third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, which is equipped with an electromagnetic catapult unlike the other two fitted with ski-jump take-off ramps, official media reported on Sunday.

A new type of warplane was tested earlier this year on the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, state-run Global Times quoted official broadcaster CCTV as saying.

It added that the new aircraft could be the long-expected J-35 - China's next-generation carrier-borne stealth fighter jet.

China currently has two aircraft carriers, Liaoning, a refit of the Soviet-era ship, and Shandong, an indigenously built 2nd aircraft carrier commissioned in 2019.

China's third aircraft carrier, Fujian, is larger than the two carriers, with a displacement of 80,000, and is currently undergoing trials.

It is the "first fully domestically developed and constructed" aircraft carrier with an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) similar to that of the American aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford, official media reports said.

China's other two aircraft carriers are equipped with ski-jump take-off ramps, while the Fujian features a flat-top flight deck.

China operates its indigenously built J-15 aircraft for its carriers.

Global Times quoted experts as saying that the CCTV report is an official confirmation that China now has a new-type carrier-borne aircraft ready for service.

The report also confirmed that the new warplane is operational not only on China's third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, which is equipped with electromagnetic catapults but also on the previous two carriers, the ramp-equipped Liaoning and Shandong, experts said, noting that this will significantly boost the capabilities of Chinese aircraft carriers.

Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post newspaper reported that the J-35 is being developed by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation as China's second fifth-generation fighter jet, following the J-20.

The jet is designed for use on aircraft carriers and is still in the development and prototype phase, but it is touted as the Chinese equivalent of Lockheed Martin’s fifth-generation fighter jet, the F-35.

Collin Koh, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, told the Post that “one most straightforward assessment is that the Liaoning, which has long been designated as a test bed for PLA carrier capabilities, is conducting experiments on the J-35 as a viable carrier-borne fighter jet”.