Images of the new Chinese naval fighter Shenyang J-35 have been emerging from time to time, and two of them have been shared on social media in recent days.
The stealth fighter that will be part of the air wing of China’s new aircraft carrier, the Fujian, was photographed before takeoff and in flight.
The prototype is already known from other images, with the designation 350003.
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It is not clear when the J-35 will be officially unveiled, but journalist Andreas Rupprecht, a Chinese defense expert, suggested that this could happen at the Zhuhai air show in November.
Rupprechet also found it strange that the image of the J-35 in flight does not have the catapult bar, which could indicate that it is an old image.
Stealth naval fighter similar to the US F-35
As has been known for some time, the J-35 is a naval variant of the J-31, a stealth fighter originally planned for the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).
As it was eventually supplanted by the Xian J-20, the J-31 ended up being an alternative for export and to provide the Chinese Navy with a 5th generation carrier-based fighter.
To this end, the twin-engine fighter received profound changes to its design, in addition to a reinforced landing gear capable of being launched by electromagnetic catapults.
In some aspects, it resembles a US F-35, which has a naval version as well as another short or vertical takeoff and landing.
The aircraft carrier Fujian is conducting sea trials before entering service and was recently seen with mock-ups of aircraft that will operate on board it.
Among them was a J-35 with its wings folded.
