Eagle Shipboard Edition
In the previous article, we said that the aerodynamic design of the J-35 is better than the F35, and after further optimization on the basis of the FC31, coupled with the WS19 engine with a thrust-to-weight ratio of 10, the flight performance and maneuverability will be dominant. And the J-35 should have super-patrol capabilities and vector thrust, which are beyond the F35. This article we will talk about radar and avionics systems, it can be said that the avionics system and radar system of the J-35 may be the technology we are most confident in. Let's take a closer look at the avionics and radar systems of the J-35 and F35. The F35 uses an advanced integrated avionics system, which is the fourth generation in avionics technology. We know that the avionics system of the fighter has developed for almost four generations, namely discrete avionics system, joint avionics system, integrated avionics system, and advanced integrated avionics system.
The leap from centralized control mode to distribution and coordination means that China's avionics system technology has advanced another generation
At the beginning of last year, The new achievements of China's avionics technology were disclosed, and China successfully developed a distributed integrated avionics system, which is the fifth generation of avionics systems. There is no public information about whether the J-35 is using this, but the technology we definitely have, from the award of this achievement, there may already be practical applications. F35 and China's J20 use advanced integrated avionics systems, while F22 uses a more backward generation of integrated avionics systems. So the F22 doesn't have a helmet-mounted display, no EUDAS distributed integrated photoelectric aperture system and the EOTS optoelectronic aiming system. The J20 on these three sets of systems are not a lot, on this basis to continue to develop and improve the performance of the new model will naturally be further improved, the latecomer advantage will make the J-35 avionics and optoelectronics technology more advantageous than the F35.
The official website of the thirteen institutes of China Electronics Science and Technology reported that the first wide bandgap gallium nitride power device in China was available as early as 2004.
Then let's talk about radar, we all know that the radar used by modern fighters is already a phased array radar. There have been four stages of development, or possibly four generations, of phased array radar. They are passive phased array radar, active phased array radar, digital array radar, and software-defined radar. The F35 radar belongs to the active phased array radar, and the F22 is the same, using gallium arsenide power devices. China's radar technology is ahead of Europe and the United States in the past ten years. Around 2005, active active phased array radar was generally replaced. The Air Police 2000 AWACS aircraft equipped with active active phased array radar entered service in 2005. The 052C destroyer equipped with active active phased array radar entered service in 2005. The active active phased array fire control radar used by the fighter jet was announced to have been successfully developed in 2008, a difference of only two or three years. The radar won the first prize of national defense science and technology progress in 2009 and the second prize of national science and technology progress in 2010. At that time, domestic military experts evaluated that its design level was comparable to the AN/APG-77 radar on the Us-22 fighter. For the main battle radar on the ground, the typical representative is the mobile three-coordinate radar K/LLQ305A, which is the world's first THREE-coordinate radar of the DBF system, which was successfully developed in 2003, and the Western developed countries such as Europe and the United States successfully developed similar radars around 2007.
The F35 fighter is equipped with an antenna for the AN/APG-81 active phased array radar
The AN/APG-77 radar uses gallium arsenide semiconductor devices with a total of 1956 transmit channels with a peak power of 10 watts per channel. The detection distance for radar reflection area of 1 square meter is 200 km. The F35 fighter's fire control radar AN/APG-81, also a gallium arsenide semiconductor device, has a total of 1676 transmit channels with a peak power of 6 watts per channel. The detection distance for radar reflected area of 1 square meter is 160 kilometers. Moreover, neither the F22 nor F35 fire control radars have been digitized. The realization of the digitization of the transceiver module is a prerequisite for the realization of digital array radar.
Around 2012, China's radar was replaced on a large scale again. The main thing in this remake is the digital array radar. The first is the successful development of the Air Police 500 early warning aircraft around 2013, and its early warning radar has adopted digital array technology for the first time in the world. In 2012, the 052D guided-missile destroyer also upgraded its radar system and was equipped with a 346A phased array radar with digital array technology. The J20 fighter also uses a digital array radar. Nine years have passed now, and China's radar may have undergone or is undergoing a major replacement. This outfit may be software-defined radar, this year's Zhuhai Air Show has been reported that anti-stealth radar has been softwareized. So far, the fire control radar used in the F22 and F35 is the active phased array radar of the Gallium arsenide device, which is a generation behind our J20.
In 2008, a report of a domestic X-band 119-watt GaN power device was published
F35 is not only a backward radar working system, but also a generation behind the power devices, F22 and F35 use gallium arsenide power devices. We know that the power device determines the transmission power of the radar, which determines the detection distance of the radar. Gallium arsenide power devices are the previous generation of power devices, the latest is gallium nitride power devices, China has begun to use a large number of people around 2013. Its transmit power is ten times greater than that of the previous generation of Gallium arsenide power devices. China's J20 uses gallium nitride power devices, with the help of gallium nitride power devices, J20's fire control radar found that the distance of the third-generation aircraft can reach nearly 300 kilometers, much higher than the 200 kilometers of F22. As for the J-35, it is definitely a gallium nitride power device, which may have entered the software-defined radar stage. So whether it's avionics systems or radars, we can crush F22 and F35.
Domestic GaN T/R digital transceiver components This kind of device is the basis for realizing digital array radar, which is only our level seven or eight years ago
Of course, Meidi is also catching up, and by 2026, when the F35 mid-term improvement will be replaced with a digital MIMO radar for gallium nitride power devices. Basically catching up with our level around 2013. But our radar is growing faster, and it's now in the stage of software radar, and that's not all. Last year, the fourteen institutes of China Electronics Science and Technology Technology won the Science and Technology Progress Award, and the reason for the award was not mentioned. It can only mean that its award-winning radar product may be a radar with a new working principle, then it can only be a quantum radar. Quantum radar has the ability to penetrate any existing radar stealth means. In fact, this has been shown at the last Zhuhai air show, and now there is no news that it may have entered the practical stage. As for whether the J-35 will be equipped is not clear, but the technology is in the hand, and whether it is installed or not is just to see whether it is needed or not. In summary, China's avionics system and radar technology level is far ahead of the United States. It's easy to make the J-35's avionics and radar surpass the F35, even in the face of an improved version of the F35.