There are many European fighter pylons, and the Chinese do not have to envy: the J-10 has fewer pylons, which is the "privilege" of a great power
Compared with European fighters with a large number of pylons, the number of pylons of China's J-10 fighter is "pitiful", which is often regarded as a manifestation of technological backwardness.
However, this perception ignores the deep strategic and technological choices of China's fighter jet design. The design logic of the J-10 actually reflects the strategic self-confidence and technical prudence of a great power.
The background of the development of the J-10 is based on the main task of the Chinese Air Force - air defense combat. This task required the fighter to have excellent combat capabilities in the air, and in the case of technical limitations, the designers chose the strategy of reducing drag and weight.
For example, the J-10 adopts a delta wing and bee waist design with a large sweep angle, which limits the number and position of pylons to a certain extent, but significantly improves the maneuverability and speed of the aircraft.
Compare the J-10 with European fighters such as the Typhoon and Rafale, although the latter has many pylons, but this design also requires a compromise between air and ground missions.
For example, although the semi-buried pylons of the Typhoon fighter increased the payload capacity, it also limited the use of space on the inside of the wings, affecting the overall bomb load of the aircraft.
Further, the J-10 has the same number of pylons as the F-16, but mainly light pylons, reflecting China's great emphasis on drag reduction and efficiency enhancement in design. At the same time, due to the large size and weight of China's air-to-air missiles and air-to-surface missiles, this also limits the number of bombs on the J-10 in actual combat.
With the introduction of the Su-27 and its derivatives such as the J-16 and J-20, China's fighter designs began to have more payload flexibility and bomb-carrying capabilities. With a wide space of technology and strategic options, China is able to optimize its fighter designs according to its own strategic needs and technological advances.
In summary, although the design of the J-10 is limited by the number of pylons, this is not a simple technical shortcoming, but an optimized choice for specific combat missions and strategic environments.
In the development of defense technology, every choice is a balance of performance, cost and strategic needs under existing conditions, and the example of the J-10 clearly demonstrates the deep logic and strategic wisdom of the design of fighter jets of great powers.
