(Presidentialwire.com)- The national security blog 19fortyfive.com reports that China is developing a sixth-generation warplane to compete with the Next Generation Air Dominance fighter, or NGAD, of the United States.
Earlier this month, a design prototype was displayed at the Zhuhai Airshow in Guangdong province. The Chinese fighter of the next generation lacks a tail and would be Beijing’s fastest and most advanced aircraft. Using the most advanced stealth technology China can muster, the design and engines aim to maximize maneuverability by producing more thrust and less drag.
According to General Mark Kelly, head of Air Combat Command, China appears to be on track with its fighter program. Kelly believes diligent, rapid work on the NGAD is necessary to counter China’s advancing sixth-generation capabilities.
China’s next-generation fighter is expected to have artificial intelligence, machine learning, augmented reality, and lasers, although little is known about it.
It should also be able to command combat-drone wingman wolf packs, and it may even have an unmanned version.
Kelly believes the aircraft will be a system-of-systems fighter that can evade radar exponentially more effectively than the NGAD.
It will be equipped with advanced sensors and radar. It will receive rapid software updates due to its open-mission architecture, and its engines will be capable of thrust vectoring.
19fortyfive.com reports that China already possesses a stealth fighter of the fifth generation: The J-20 Mighty Dragon has been deployed in all combat regions of the country, with more fighters joining the air force every month. China is anticipated to use J-20-developed technologies to maximize the capabilities of the sixth-generation fighter.
For instance, China is replacing Russian-made AL-31F powerplants with domestic WS-15 turbofan engines to improve the J-20 engines. The WS-15 could form the basis of its sixth-generation fighter’s propulsion system.
China may have a sixth-generation fighter ready for its maiden flight between 2026 and 2028 and may introduce the aircraft to its air force by 2035. Therefore, the United States will need to work quickly on the NGAD to stay ahead of the Chinese.
In the coming decades, China is eager to match the United States. Regarding NGAD, the U.S. Air Force and Navy cannot move fast enough because China is closing the gap. With fighter aircraft such as the F-22 and F-35, the United States used to be decades ahead of its adversaries. Now it must accept the reality that Beijing can keep up with it.
Generals and admirals must continue to sound the alarm regarding new Chinese aircraft.
But with Biden as President, he would be afraid of insulting his Chinese benefactors.
