China’s new jet engine suddenly takes air combat in a whole new direction
- Visitors to Zhuhai see debut of jet technology that flies on cutting edge
- J-10’s thrust vectoring engine could shape future of Chinese air power
An upgraded version of China’s J-10 fighter jet stole the limelight at the country’s biggest air show this week.
The J-10 variant has manoeuvrability and combat capability that, until now, were the preserve of the United States and Russia.
At Airshow China 2018 in Zhuhai, southern Guangdong province, the J-10B TVC performed a series of flying drills including a J-turn (rapid change of direction), the Cobra (raising the nose to vertical) and falling leaf moves, all of which were made possible by the WS-10 Taihang engine, which is equipped with a thrust-vectoring nozzle control system.
The new engine proves that China can build first-class, thrust-vectoring engines to power its advanced fighters, a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force lieutenant colonel told the Chinese government-controlled Global Times, adding that such technology could give Chinese pilots an edge in combat.
While China has strengthened its navy and air force, engine technology is a weakness of its fighter jet programme and for years it has had to rely on imports. According to people close to the matter, mass production of home-grown engines for the fifth generation J-20 stealth fighter was delayed this week after failures in reliability tests.
Song Zhongping, a Beijing-based military affairs commentator, said the performance of the J-10B TVC was a sign that the flight control of China’s fighter jets had improved.
“The system that controls the TVC nozzle and the whole plane is far more complicated [now], and the smooth operation in the show demonstrated that China has solved the problem,” Song said.