China has revealed 6th-generation 'stealthy' fighter

[quintessentone]

According to one of the designers, the third engine is primarily for power generation, which also says a lot about their engine technology.

Are you thinking Achilles' heel in warfare?

[Zaphod58]

Are you thinking Achilles' heel in warfare?

One of the reasons China has so many aircraft is because they have to go with quantity over quality. They're catching up, and the WS-15 is a vast improvement over previous engines, but compared to Western engines, they're still a generation or two behind. The WS-15 is just entering service, after 30 years of development. Serial production started in 2023, and it's just being put into the J-20.

[quintessentone]

One of the reasons China has so many aircraft is because they have to go with quantity over quality. They're catching up, and the WS-15 is a vast improvement over previous engines, but compared to Western engines, they're still a generation or two behind. The WS-15 is just entering service, after 30 years of development. Serial production started in 2023, and it's just being put into the J-20.

Give it to us straight Zaph, are they toast in aerial warfare?

[Zaphod58]

Give it to us straight Zaph, are they toast in aerial warfare?

Not at all. Numbers will make up a lot, and the J-20 is designed to go after HVTs. Lose the tankers, and we lose the region.

[quintessentone]

Not at all. Numbers will make up a lot, and the J-20 is designed to go after HVTs. Lose the tankers, and we lose the region.

So, it's a numbers game like WWI.

[Zaphod58]

So, it's a numbers game like WWI.

War usually is.

[quintessentone]

War usually is.

Sad, Zaph, because the cannon fodder is always not the wealthy and elitist. Maybe it it was war would be rare.

[rickymouse]

Don't know a lot about these 6th generation jets, will it be able to utilize any significant weapons, or is it's design limited to just a few types of weapons?  Just because it goes fast does not mean it will be able to carry enough weapons to be useful in many situations.  How about range, how far can this jet travel?

Seems they are not letting out much information about it yet, it appears they are just bragging about their new technology, speed, and altitude.

[Zaphod58]

The generation system is a marketing description, nothing more. That means that two different countries can have two different definitions of the same generation, or one can be a generation ahead, because they identify something as a later generation. Currently no one has identified what they define as "6th Generation". Calling this 6th Gen, just because it meets some of the believed criteria makes about as much sense as the generation system does (none).