Chinese Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter

Citation :

17/01/2019

De nouvelles versions du J-20 devraient voir le jour !



L’avion furtif chinois Chengdu J-20 »Weilong », ou puissant dragon devrait donner naissance à de nouvelles versions selon une déclaration faite hier par des experts militaires chinois à la télévision centrale chinoise (CCTV).. Trois versions seraient actuellement à l’étude, l’une serait spécialisée dans le domaine de la guerre-électronique à la manière de l’EF-18G « Growler » de la marine américaine et le second serait un bombardier tactique et la troisième serait une variante pour l’aéronavale chinoise pour venir équiper ses porte-avions.

Une version biplace :

Si la variante actuelle du J-20 est un monoplace, il semble bien qu’un nouveau modèle biplace soit prévu notamment pour la version de guerre-électronique (EW). Ce qui en ferait le premier avion de chasse furtif biplace au monde. En effet, dans le cadre d’un conflit futur hautement numérisé, de grandes quantités d’informations seront disponibles. L’ajout d’un navigateur de combat s’avère important dans le cadre de missions dédiées au traitement des détecteurs adverses et de leur neutralisation. Dans le cadre de l’attaque au sol, le second pilote peut s’avérer une aide précieuse. Toujours selon le reportage de la télévision chinoise, le J-20 sera constamment adapté aux besoins et constamment amélioré. Reste à voir comment la PLAAF va intégrer le J-20 avec le J-31, lui aussi furtif, mais de taille plus réduite.

Le J-20 « Weilong » :

Le Chengdu J-20 « Weilong » (puissant dragon) est l'un des avions de combat les plus perfectionnés selon les dires de l’avionneur chinois. L’avion est censé pouvoir répondre au F-22 américain.

Doté d’une aile de type delta et des plans canards à l'avant, le J-20 dispose de deux empennages verticaux en diagonale mobiles d'un seul bloc. Cependant, Il n'y a pas d'empennage horizontal mobile, les plans canards, les parties mobiles de l'aile delta et les deux empennages diagonaux suffisent à un contrôle optimum. L’avion est doté de la poussée vectorielle, permettant d'augmenter la maniabilité de celui-ci.

Pour l’instant, on ne connaît pas encore le modèle exact du moteur WS-10 qui équipe le J-20. Certains avancent en Chine, qu’il pourrait s’agit du WS-10-T2. Il semble par contre que la version du WS-10 est une dérivée du WS-10B qui incorpore les améliorations portées du WS-10G (14 200 kg), notamment au niveau de la structure de la soufflante et du compresseur. On estime la poussée à 14 tonnes avec postcombustion.

L’avion dispose d’une baie ventrale pour l’armement d’une longueur estimée à 4,5 mètres pour 3 mètres de largeur, l’avion semble pouvoir emporter quatre missiles air-air de moyenne portée PL-15 des missiles air-air à courte portée PL21. Par contre, les missiles air-air de courte portée sont localisés aux niveau des petites soutes latérales de chaque côté du fuselage à proximité des entrées d’air pouvant chacune recevoir un missile air-air PL-10.

Le J-20 mesure 20,3 mètres de long et a une envergure de 12,9 mètres. Il est fabriqués à partir d’alliages avancés, avec un poids à vide d’environ 19 000 kg pour une masse maximum de 32 000 kg. L’avion affiche un plafond de 20 km et une vitesse maximale supérieure à Mach 2 (2 470 km / heure),

Les coûts de recherche et développement du J-20 ont été estimés à plus de 30 milliards de yuans (4,4 milliards de dollars), avec un coût par avion de 100 à 110 millions de dollars.



Photos : J-20 au Salon de Zuhai 2018 @ Taohang Zhou

http://psk.blog.24heures.ch/archive/2019/01/17/de-nouvelles-versions-du-j-20-devraient-voir-le-jour-866806.html

The EurAsian Times a écrit:

China’s J-20 Fighter Jet Can Surpass The US F-22 Raptor With One Small Upgrade — Chinese Expert

The ‘fifth-generation J-20 fighter jet of the Chinese PLA Air Force may be upgraded with two-dimensional thrust vectoring control (TVC) nozzles for its engines in the future.

This would greatly increase the aircraft’s maneuverability and stealth capabilities with a Chinese expert claiming that the modified J-20 would even surpass its US counterpart, the F-22 Raptor, Global Times reported.

The news broke when PLAAF’s first J-20 pilot, Li Gang, made a remark that the aircraft is expected to be fitted with two-dimensional thrust vectoring control nozzles when asked about his expectations on the future development of the J-20s potential thrust vector control in an interview with Hong-Kong based Phoenix TV.

Although these are not official claims, the proposed upgrade would not be entirely new. Last year, it was reported that a new variant of the J-20 — J-20B — was unveiled on July 8, 2020, and entered mass production the same day. The only change mentioned was that the J-20B was to be equipped with thrust vectoring control.



Notwithstanding such reports, China does have the capability to develop the relevant technologies, as it demonstrated a pre-production J-10C with an axisymmetric thrust vector control (TVC) nozzle during Zhuhai Airshow 2018.

What is Thrust Vectoring Control?

Technically, it is the ability of an aircraft, rocket, or other aerial vehicles to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine(s) or motor(s) to control the attitude or angular velocity of the vehicle. In simpler terms, it enhances the maneuverability of the aircraft.

These are especially useful at high altitudes where the aircraft’s control surfaces are unable to produce much drag, degrading maneuverability, and flight performance. This method was originally envisaged for rockets and ballistic missiles, and in aircraft later to provide upward vertical thrust as a means to give aircraft vertical (VTOL) or short (STOL) takeoff and landing ability.

Subsequently, it was realized that using vectored thrust in combat situations enabled aircraft to perform various maneuvers not available to conventional-engined planes.

To perform turns, aircraft that use no thrust vectoring must rely on aerodynamic control surfaces only, such as ailerons or elevators, but an aircraft with vectoring can rely on control surfaces along with the added push from the engine into that direction.

This can also enhance post-stall recovery, making it more maneuverable and capable of achieving high angles of attack.

Nevertheless, the Chinese jet’s comparison with F-22 as the former being ‘better’ could be complete ignorance of J-20’s lack of powerful engines. This gap in the thrust-to-weight ratio is expected to be plugged by the introduction of the WS-15 engine in the future.

The National Interest a écrit:

Chinese Aircraft Carriers to Soon to Fly Advanced J-20 Stealth Fighters

The J-20 could function as long-range strike aircraft.

Here's What You Need to Remember: Still, China's first two flattops probably won’t venture too far from home, the DIA predicted. "The primary purpose of this first domestic aircraft carrier will be to serve a regional defense mis­sion," the intelligence agency claimed. "Beijing probably also will use the carrier to project power throughout the South China Sea and possibly into the Indian Ocean."

The Chinese military reportedly has decided to develop the air force’s J-20 stealth fighter into a sea-based variant to fly from the navy’s growing fleet of aircraft carriers.

The Central Military Commission, the People’s Liberation Army’s top decision-making body, favors the J-20 over the smaller FC-31 stealth fighter design, according to an August 2019 report in the Hong Kong South China Morning Post.

The Chengdu Aerospace Corporation, which builds the J-20 for the air force, “will announce some new products, which will include a new version of their J-20,” an unnamed source told the newspaper. “You can guess what type it will be.”

As part of future Chinese carrier air wings, the J-20 most likely would perform beyond-visual-range air-superiority missions, firing heavy air-to-air missiles at distant targets much like the U.S. Navy’s now-retired F-14 fighter would have done.

The J-20 also could function as long-range strike aircraft, again like the F-14 did during the twilight of its four-decade career ending in 2006.

“Operating from a carrier would certainly enable the J-20 to better perform what many analysts envision to be its two primary missions, long-range strike and long-range air superiority,” Robert Farley wrote at The Diplomat.

“Using the PL-15 [beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile], a carrier battle group with J-20s could push U.S. tanker and early warning aircraft deep into the Pacific, as well as threaten installations such as Guam,” Farley added. “Of course, any [Chinese navy] carrier leaving the friendly confines of the first island chain [beyond Japan and The Philippines] would become extraordinarily vulnerable to attacks from U.S. submarines and aircraft.”

Selecting the J-20 “will mark the end of a lengthy debate between its supporters and advocates of the FC-31 as to which would make a better carrier-based fighter,” South China Morning Post reported. “Those who favored the J-20 said it was more advanced and reliable than the FC-31, but its supporters said it was more light and nimble.”

“Both the J-20 and FC-31 have their advantages,” Song Zhongping, a military commentator for Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television, told the Hong Kong newspaper. “The size of the J-20 is similar to the J-15 since both are powerful heavy fighters.”

According to Farley, Chinese planners also worry about the cost of developing a second stealth fighter in addition to the J-20. “An economic downturn will starve the service of resources,” Farley pointed out.

A carrier-based J-20 partially would replace the J-15, China’s first carrier fighter.

The J-15 is a clone of Russia's Su-33 naval fighter. Outwardly, the fighter has a lot in common with U.S., French and British carrier planes. "The J-15 has folding wings, strengthened landing gear, a tailhook under a shortened tail stinger, two-piece slotted flaps, canards and a retractable inflight-refueling probe on the left side of the nose," the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency explained in a January 2019 report.

The non-stealthy J-15 weighs 17 tons while empty and can launch via the ramp on the bow of China’s first two carriers, which lack catapults. But the ramp-launch method limits the J-15 to around 30 tons maximum weight, translating into a modest weapons load. The J-15 reportedly also is unreliable and accident-prone.

The J-20 weighs 21 tons without fuel and weapons and up to 40 tons with them.

“The J-20 would be big for a carrier-based fighter, but certainly not the largest that has ever flown,” Farley wrote. “The Grumman F-14 had a slightly higher take-off weight, although it was a bit shorter. The A-5 Vigilante, which operated from U.S. carriers in the 1960s, was slightly longer but somewhat lighter.”

The Chinese stealth fighter likely will require a catapult for launch from a carrier. The U.S. Navy's own carriers use steam catapults to launch aircraft weighing as much as 50 tons. The Chinese navy could commission its first catapult-equipped aircraft carrier in 2022, according to the May 2019 edition of the U.S. Defense Department’s annual report on Chinese military developments.

“China began construction of its second domestically built aircraft carrier in 2018, which will likely be larger and fitted with a catapult launch system,” the DIA noted. “This design will enable it to support additional fighter aircraft, fixed-wing early-warning aircraft, and more rapid flight operations. China’s second domestically built carrier is projected to be operational by 2022.”

The older flattops Liaoning and Shandong should remain useful even after the second domestic carrier -- China’s third flattop -- enters service. "Though Liaoning has substantially less capability than a U.S. Navy carrier, it provides extended air-defense coverage for at-sea task groups and is being used to develop further China’s carrier pilots, deck crews and tactics," the Pentagon noted in the 2018 edition of its annual report on the Chinese military.

Still, China's first two flattops probably won’t venture too far from home, the DIA predicted. "The primary purpose of this first domestic aircraft carrier will be to serve a regional defense mis­sion," the intelligence agency claimed. "Beijing probably also will use the carrier to project power throughout the South China Sea and possibly into the Indian Ocean."

“The timeline for developing a carrier variant of the J-20 remains unclear,” Farley wrote. “Converting the aircraft to naval service may take some time.”

The Chinese navy could possess as many as six aircraft carriers by the mid-2030s, experts told state media. As many as four could have catapults.

Song Zhongping, a military expert and T.V. commentator, told Global Times that China needs at least five aircraft carriers to execute its military strategy. Wang Yunfei, a retired Chinese navy officer, said Beijing needs six flattops.

Six carriers might allow Beijing to equip each of its regional fleets with two flattops. One vessel could deploy while the other underwent maintenance.

If Chengdu does develop a carrier-based J-20, the Chinese navy eventually could operate a mixed carrier fleet including two small flattops with J-15s and as many as four bigger vessels with J-20s.

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