In the previous article, the author talked about a series of stories about the development of continental fighters, such as J-15, J-16 and other fighters. Today, let's talk about the mainland's J-20 series fighters. In a series of air shows or defense exhibitions, the mainland will publish reference data for various active fighters, please note that it is reference data. In the course of the introduction of the J-20 fighter, a situation arose with a maximum payload of 11 tons. A question arises, as a fifth-generation aircraft, is there a need for the maximum external capacity of the J-20 fighter of 11 tons?
U.S. Air Force F22 family fighter
First of all, let's talk about the difference between the fifth-generation aircraft and the fourth-and-a-half-generation, and the fourth-generation modified fighter. First of all, there is the stealth ability. Relying on stealth capabilities, fifth-generation aircraft are able to fire first and suppress other types of fighters in the air. Second, relying on a new generation of high-power engines, even if the two sides enter the air combat mode, the fifth-generation aircraft can rely on the aerodynamic control of supersonic cruise and vector thrust technology to steadily occupy an advantage. Of course, the advantages of fifth-generation aircraft in other aspects are also very obvious.
In air combat missions, for the sake of stealth, fifth-generation aircraft will basically use a built-in magazine in the belly instead of using wing pylons. Because once the external pylons are used, the overall stealth effect of the fighter will be greatly weakened, which is not conducive to the air combat of the fifth-generation mechanism. In a series of air shows or defense exhibitions, in the process of introducing the J-20 fighter, there was a maximum payload of 11 tons. So, as a heavy fifth-generation aircraft, is the J-20 fighter necessary?
U.S. Air Force F35 family fighter
Seriously, even fifth-generation fighters have strong plug-in capabilities. In peacetime, it can not be used, but it cannot be without, in the event of an emergency, the fifth-generation aircraft is required to carry out ground-to-sea strike missions, and the fifth-generation aircraft can also be equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks or various types of missiles. Not only the J-20, but also the American F22, F35 and Russian Su-57 fighters are also similar models.
The F22 fighter uses two high-thrust F119 series turbofan engines, with a combat radius of more than 900 kilometers. The built-in magazine in the belly can carry 6 AIM120 series medium-range bombs, and the maximum load capacity of the built-in magazine in the belly is 2.2 tons. In addition, the left and right wing pylons have a maximum load capacity of 7 tons. The maximum payload capacity of the F22 fighter is about 9 tons, so what level is this? The maximum payload capacity of the mainland J-7A fighter is about 9 tons. It can be seen that the comprehensive payload capacity of the F22 fighter is still very strong.
Next, the mainland will talk about another fifth-generation aircraft in the United States, the F35 fighter. The F35 fighter is a medium-sized fifth-generation aircraft developed by the United States after the F22, with a maximum take-off weight of about 31 tons, and uses an F135 series high-thrust turbofan engine. The F35 fighter needs to take into account the US Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy at the same time, so there are three main models of A/B/C. Among them, the F35A fighter belongs to the Air Force version, with a maximum external capacity of about 7.7 tons. The F35B is a version with a short take-off and vertical landing, which looks very tall.
At the same time, the comprehensive performance is the lowest, and the maximum external capacity is only 6 tons. The F35C belongs to the shipborne model of the U.S. Navy, with a maximum external capacity of about 7 tons. In fact, in terms of maximum plug-in capacity, the F35 fighter of the United States is basically equivalent to the plug-in ability of F16, FA18 and other fighters. For fifth-generation aircraft such as F35 and F22, they must focus on air supremacy in peacetime, and they will not easily use external pylons. But if the real task requires it, it is also possible to carry out complex strike missions.
U.S. Air Force F16 family fighter
For example, the American F35 series fighter has been tested with full equipment. Maneuverability and stealth will have a noticeable effect, however, the fighter itself is capable of carrying out similar strike missions. Russian Su-57 fighters, the situation is very similar. According to the data released by Russia, the maximum take-off weight of the Su-57 fighter is about 35 tons, and the maximum external capacity is about 10 tons. It has 4 weapons bays and a combat radius of about 1200 km. It can be seen that the fifth-generation aircraft in various countries are in a similar situation.
The J-20 is a fifth-generation fighter developed by the mainland, and according to foreign media reports, by the end of 2023, about 300 have been equipped, and they are still being mass-produced. According to the data published by Continental at various exhibitions, the J-20 fighter at this stage uses two turbofan 10C engines. The future standard model will use two turbofan 15 series engines. The maximum take-off weight is 37 tons, the combat radius is 2000 km, the maximum range is 5500 km, and the maximum payload capacity is 11 tons.
The American F15 series fighters have many models
It can be seen that the J-20 fighter is slightly larger than the F22, Su-57 and other fighters in terms of fighter size. However, the combat radius, payload capacity, etc. are much stronger. In the process of carrying out air supremacy operations, the J-20 fighter is also based on a built-in magazine in the belly, which can be mounted with 6 Thunderbolt-15 series medium-range bombs. However, once a long-distance attack or a large-load operation is carried out, the J-20 fighter can also bear it, for example, there have been reports of the J-20 fighter carrying 4 auxiliary fuel tanks for long-distance attack.
The maximum payload capacity of the US F15E fighter is about 11 tons. Until the latest F15EX, the maximum payload capacity has been increased to 13.4 tons. The mainland's J-16 fighter has a maximum payload capacity of 12 tons. It can be seen that the J-20 fighter has a maximum bomb capacity of 11 tons, which is the strongest among the current fifth-generation aircraft.
Russian Su-57 fighter
The situation is very similar with the J-35 fighter being developed on the mainland. The J-35 fighter uses two turbofan 13E medium-thrust engines, and will be replaced with two turbofan 19 series engines in the future. According to reports, the maximum take-off weight is 35 tons, the combat radius is 1350 km, and the maximum payload capacity is about 8 tons. Among them, the maximum load of the built-in magazine in the belly is 2 tons. The left and right wings have 6 pylons, with a maximum load capacity of 6 tons, and a total of about 8 tons of weapons or equipment.
At present, the J-35 fighter has canceled the airspeed tube and installed the tail landing hook, which has entered the advanced testing stage. It is very close to finalization and mass production delivery. From the development of the above-mentioned types of fighters, the mainland can find that as a fifth-generation aircraft, it mainly uses a built-in magazine in the belly of the aircraft to seize air supremacy on the battlefield. If you need to perform complex combat missions on your own, you can also perform them.
The maximum payload capacity of the J-20 fighter is 11 tons
However, for many countries, it is obvious that the gains outweigh the losses by letting fifth-generation aircraft carry out ground-to-sea strike missions. First of all, it is necessary to take the risk of being shot down by the fifth-generation aircraft. With the destruction of stealth, the advantages of fifth-generation aircraft will be significantly reduced. Secondly, fifth-generation aircraft perform various complex tasks, which have a great impact on the life of the airframe. Third, the cost performance is low. For example, why do you need to send the J-20 to perform the tasks that the J-7 can complete?
The J-35 fighter has entered the advanced testing stage
For example, in the development strategy of the mainland navy, J-35, J-15B, J-15D and other models belong to the common use mode. The J-35 fighter is responsible for suppressing the opponent's fifth-generation aircraft and other fighters and seizing air supremacy over the entire battlefield. The J-15B fighter is responsible for ground-to-sea operations (with a payload capacity of about 10 tons), and the J-15D fighter is responsible for operations in a complex electromagnetic environment.
The payload capacity of the J-16 fighter is very strong
A series of stories about the development of aircraft types in the PLA troops, and many more. The author will talk to you slowly in future articles.