J20 shows its teeth
 

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....7391d61b2.jpeg

What we see isn't necessarily surprising, but it is interesting nonetheless. In the main ventral bays, the J-20 is carrying four PL-15 medium-to-long-range air-to-air missiles. The type is somewhat analogous to the American AIM-120D AMRAAM. Speculation about what missile actually would hold the PL-15 designation has bounced around a lot, with very long-range missiles and those fitted with throttleable ramjets also potentially receiving the designation, but now it seems the PL-15 is indeed a dual-pulse motor and AESA equipped missile with a similar profile as its predecessor PL-12. The PL-12 is loosely analogous to the AIM-120A/B.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....648290d140.jpg




China's J-20 Stealth Fighter Stuns By Brandishing Full Load Of Missiles At Zhuhai Air Show

That thing looks about as stealthy as a VERY large house brick

I think that's a good thing!

Interesting positioning of the foreplanes (or are they canards??).

Looking like SAAB had a hand in this one??? Probably not though...

seems a bit of a conundrum at the moment

you can have stealth but no missiles or missiles but no stealth!

Maybe not willingly.

Wonder how those PL15s get launched. Does not look to be much space for a downward ram and gravity is rather less than ideal on a fighter!

There must be a trapeze or ram system to push out the PL15s. There are no flow diffusers at the front edge of the bay so the missile won't freefall in to the airstream anyway - it will just bounce off and back in to the bay and then just bounce around in there.

Once you're in heater range do you need stealth?

As for the LR missiles, ejection release units don't h ave to be large.

J-20 demo at Zhuhai Airshow 2018.

Stealth aside... their formation flying is terrible!

The best defence is to tell 'em we can't see it - even though we can! :E

Good find Teej! Thanks for sharing.

Even so Ewan...if Fairford promised me that display next year, they could triple the price and I'd still pay up!

I thought their roll rate was quite impressive at times.

I have to admit, I think its a pretty cool looking aeroplane. But then this was what I used to make out of lego when I was a kid.

They might be stealthy to radar, but it easy to see the smoke trails.

Looks like there's a secondary internal bay for the heaters to me, lots of video bits that don't show them hanging externally but lots of hinting at a secondary internal storage for them.

yes, it looks like they rotate out of the bay just above them.

doors open -> missile rotates out -> doors close

Read the linked article.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....84f9dbd38e.jpg

Yeah, to be honest, the drive and those articles aren't my go-to for aerospace articles. I said in two lines what Tyler took paragraphs and paragraphs over. Most of it is implied if you know what you're looking at.

That is an understatement !!

Why are their bomb doors sorry weapons bay doors permanently open, even the two in formation; haven't they found out how to close them?

Very very unlikely. Too many different angles and too many large gaps. For example:
Leading and trailing edge of canard/foreplane are different.
Both the foreplane angles are different than the wing angles.
And the wing is cranked so has multiple angles
Leading and trailing edges of ventral fin are different from each other and different from wing and foreplane and different from vertical fins.

Big gap between foreplane and body, meaning big corner reflectors in the all important forward aspect.
Big gap between moving leading edge flap and fixed leading edge of wing, so more corner reflectors in the all important forward aspect.
The nose is also double chined with different chine angles. Bad for forward aspect reflectivity.
The intake angles are very different than the wing or the foreplane angles. Again bad for forward aspect reflectivity.
Sharp crease where the engine inlet cones meet the fuselage. More bad for forward aspect reflectivity.

BVR would be the interesting question if it came to a shooting match, but otherwise that looks like a competent platform for patrolling/'defending' the Spratly shoal and other parts of China's perceived 'territory'.

I agree with MPN11. That looks like a competent machine and the Chinese possess all the skills required to operate it from their homeland.

IR missile looks like a RedTop

Doesn't look "nimble" at all.

Seemed to turn quite handily in the videos despite its looks.

Quite a blue note there as they approach - very Thunderbirds.