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China looks tested a novel of the sixth generation stealth military aircraft as videos of warplanes went viral on social media.
Mysterious tailless planes have been seen flying over the southwestern city of Chengdu Sichuan province, although the defense ministry has yet to confirm the speculation.
Both jets are tailless, meaning they have no vertical stabilizers to help maintain control. Such craft are usually kept stable by computers that interpret the pilot’s control inputs and prevent detection.
The test flight coincided with the anniversary of the birth Mao Zedongfounder of the People’s Republic of China. The aircraft designs are separate from the Chengdu and Shenyang aircraft and may be among the most sophisticated fighters in the world.
The larger of the two designs is roughly diamond-shaped, with three air intakes for its engines, two along the fuselage and one on top – a highly unusual configuration. The smaller one has a more conventional layout but no tail.
Both lack the 90 degree corners typical of stealth molding for reduced radar detection. “It really looks like a leaf” Defense Timeswebsite based in Chengdu, she wrote on Weibo.
China’s new planes are not the first modern tailless designs. The Northrop Grumman B-2 and B-21 stealth bombers have flying wings, and several unmanned aircraft, such as the Lockheed Martin RQ-170 and the Chinese CH-7, have no tails.
The Chinese military boasts of its new technology at the end of the Western calendar year in late December or January.
In May 2024, the military said its J-20 stealth fighter, also known as the Mighty Dragon, could easily reach the supercruise. Beijing has reportedly deployed as many as 250 stealth aircraft, which were first put into service in 2017, but their capabilities are not publicly known.
At the November air show in Zhuhai, China revealed the twin-engine J-35 stealth fighter.
As China continues to modernize its military, the designs “demonstrate the willingness of China’s aerospace industry to experiment and innovate,” said Euan Graham, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
“Whatever the pros or cons, it seems to be a very original design,” he told Reuters. “They deserve credit for that and should shake off any lingering complacency that the US and its allies always set the pace.”
The US Defense Department said it was “aware of the reports” but had no further comment beyond what was included in its annual report on China’s military this month.
China also launched a new amphibious assault ship on Friday that is designed to strengthen the navy’s combat capabilities in distant seas.
The Sichuan, the first Type 076 ship, is China’s largest to date, carrying 40,000 tons and equipped with an electromagnetic catapult that will allow fighter jets to be launched directly from its deck, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
The ship is designed to launch ground troops into landing craft and provide air support. It is also equipped with “defense force technology” that allows fighter jets to land on its deck.
China’s first amphibious assault ships, the Type 075, were launched in 2019.
Chinese military expert Song Zhongping compared Sichuan to a “light aircraft carrier,” according to state media Global Times.