J-10C - AESA + WS-10 Taihang engine
The appearance of the J-10C fighter is similar to that of the J-10B. The main difference is that two knife antennas are added to the back. This is because the J-10C is equipped with an advanced active phased array radar, which is more than that used by the J-10B. PESA is more advanced. The J-10C and J-10 have a large difference in appearance. They adopt a more advanced DSI intake port design. The original six-bone ribs that were originally designed because of the installation of a larger thrust engine no longer exist. It is a more streamlined design. The overall performance of the J-10 fighter has surpassed the F-16A / B, and the performance of the J-10C fighter has surpassed all models of the F-16, one of the main active fighters in the United States. However, the United States also believes that because the J-10 fighter engine still depended on the Russian side, the J-10C can only use the latest improved engine of the Russian AL-31FN.
The J-10C aircraft is an advanced multi-purpose fighter. Its combat mission is to seize air dominance and carry out campaign assaults . Cooperating with other combat forces, he can play an important role in offensive air, land and sea assaults. The J-10C aircraft is responsible for combat duty, marking that this type of aircraft has officially formed combat effectiveness. This type of aircraft can play a very important role in enhancing the Air Force's maneuverability and combat in the whole region after its formation of combat effectiveness.
The J-10C is equipped with advanced sensors and information offensive and defensive systems, as well as integrated avionics and a variety of advanced airborne weapons. It has a relatively strong mid-range air combat and the ability to accurately strike ground and sea targets. In terms of air combat, it has a relatively strong mid-range air combat capability. In terms of ground and sea assaults, it can take advantage of information offense and defense to accurately strike a variety of ground and sea targets.
The J-10C uses a DSI inlet, which can ensure flight performance in the transonic speed range. The biggest advantage compared to the J-10A is that the DSI inlet can reduce the structural weight. In appearance, the DSI inlet is the biggest feature of the J-10C. The DSI inlet has become the standard for several Chinese-developed light fighters. The main role of the DSI intake duct on the J-10C is to simplify the structure of the front end of the intake duct and reduce the structural weight. Although there is no specific data, judging from the appearance alone, the structural simplification effect of the J-10C at the front air intake is very obvious. Every kilogram of weight saved from the structure can be converted into internal fuel or weapon load. Some Chinese media mentioned that the bulge of the DSI intake duct helps to increase the stealth performance of the J-10C, but this conclusion is a bit far-fetched. Because the stealth of the J-10 model has been determined at the beginning of its design, that is, this light fighter is not a stealth fighter. DSI bulging can reduce the infrared characteristics of turbofan engines, but it does not actually help RCS (radar reflection area) on the front of the body. For the J-10C, it is still a non-stealth fighter with a large RCS.
The J-10C uses an active phased array radar, which has both powerful "air-to-ground" and "air-to-air" performance, and can also carry a variety of weapons. According to the Red Sword-2016 exercise, the J-10C air combat weapons include PL-10, PL-8, PL-12, and PL-15 air-to-air missiles; air-to-ground weapons include KD-88 air-to-ground missiles, YJ-91 anti-radiation missiles, and laser / Satellite-guided bombs can perform both air intercept missions and air-surface missions against ground targets and maritime targets. The multi-purpose capability is greatly improved compared to the J-10A.
Lin Youquan, chief scientist of China Electronics Technology Group, the project leader and chief designer, faced the pressure to work with everyone, step by step, and made significant progress in engineering and localization. He presided over and completed the first part of our country. The development and test flight of airborne active phased array fire control radar (AESA), the radar system design level is domestically leading, and it is equivalent to the world's most advanced AN / APG-77 radar equipped with the US F-22 aircraft, which is a new generation in China. The development of the fighter fire control radar has laid a solid technical foundation. The results have been applied to other defense and military fields such as aerospace, aviation, antimissile defense, and have huge military, social, economic benefits and broad application prospects. The project won 2009 China Electronics Technology Group Special Award, National Defense Science and Technology Progress Award First Prize, 2010 National Science and Technology Progress Award Second Prize. China has approached the United States in the development of airborne active phased array fire control radars. The domestic AESA is entirely possible to be equipped on the J-10C or J-20. At the Zhuhai Air Show, the 14th Institute showed the airborne active phased array fire control radar code-named KJ7A.
In 2017, during the 90th anniversary of the establishment of the military, the J-10C made its first public appearance, which attracted widespread attention at home and abroad. After the installation of the Air Force, the actual combat training of the J-10C has gradually started, and the flight personnel have grown steadily. It has played an important role in the air force's "Red Sword-2016" and "Red Sword-2017" system confrontation exercises, and has improved the Air Force's new combat capabilities lay the foundation.
China's new multi-role fighter jet J-10C began combat duty 16 April 2018, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) air force announced. Equipped with an advanced avionics system and various airborne weapons, the domestically-developed fighter has airstrike capabilities within medium and close range and is capable of precisely striking land and maritime targets, the air force said in a statement. It is China's third-generation supersonic fighter and made its debut when the PLA marked its 90th anniversary in July 2017 at Zhurihe military training base in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The fighter will enrich the air force's offensive and defensive system and improve its capability to fulfill duties and missions, according to the statement. Shen Jinke, a spokesperson for the PLA air force, said that the air force will advance training and war readiness, and sharpen its striking, defensive, and air delivery capabilities. It will also firmly safeguard China's airspace security and national strategic interests in the new era, Shen said.
The new jet is modified from the J-10 fighter jet and will help improve the air force's fighting and war-readiness capabilities, said Wang Mingzhi, a military expert. The air force is gradually building a combat system adapted to the need of informationized air warfare, comprised of heavy air superiority fighters such as J-11 series, multi-role fighters such as J-10 series and J-16, new-generation stealth fighters such as J-20, and medium and long-range bombers such as H-6K, Wang said.
The J-10C used the AL-31 series engine, but it is the latest version of the AL-31FN (3 series) engine. According to the comparison of public data, the so-called AL-31FN (3 series) should be a single-shot version of the AL-31F M1. The maximum thrust of the 3 series was increased by 1 ton to 13.5 tons, and the military thrust was increased by 500 kg to 8.2 tons. The famous foreign gossip Chinese military magazine "Hanhe Defense Review" once pointed out in the 12th issue of 2013 that the Russian "Salute" design bureau confirmed that it would export the AL-31F-M1 engine to China. At present, the M1 version of the AL-31F is mainly used for J-15 carrier aircraft, while the 3 series of AL-31FN is used on the J-10C.
Some Chinese observers believed that as a model, it was unlikely that the J-10C will be retrofitted with domestically developed WS-10 in the future. The J-10C, as a single-engine fighter, has extremely high requirements for engine reliability. Although the WS-10 has completed the final design, its reliability is still not comparable to the AL-31FN. From the perspective of actual equipment, the WS-10 is also mainly installed on the dual-engine J-11B, which improves reliability by dual-engine.
A newly built J-10C fighter jet is reportedly equipped with a WS-10 Taihang engine and ready to join military service, a sign that the homemade engine had become technically mature and reliable, experts said in March 2020. China will no longer rely on foreign fighter jet engines and the more advanced J-20 fighter jet could also start to use homemade engines soon, Chinese experts predicted. A J-10C developed by an arm of a Chinese major aerospace firm was seen using a domestically developed WS-10 Taihang engine instead of a Russian-made AL-31 engine previous J-10s were installed with, Weihutang, a column on military affairs affiliated with China Central Television, reported on 02 March 2020.
The WS-10 Taihang is China's first high-performance, high-thrust turbofan engine with intellectual property rights, Weihutang reported. The column Weihutang was referring to a video released over the weekend by Chengdu Aircraft Industrial (Group) Co. Ltd. under the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), which showed a J-10C fighter jet painted with Chinese military aircraft insignia taxiing on an airfield before take-off. Chengdu Aircraft Industrial (Group) has resumed work since February 10 from the extended holidays due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, and recently conducted its first flight operations, the company said in the video released on its WeChat public account.
Installing the J-10C with the WS-10 engine shows this engine has reached a very high technical level and can fulfill combat demands in terms of reliability and thrust, reaching the same standard as foreign products, Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert, said. China will continue to improve the engine and will no longer rely on imported products, Wei said. Some J-11B and J-16 fighter jets have been using WS-10 engines for a while, Weihutang said, but the two types of aircraft use two engines, and the J-10, which only uses one, is more vulnerable to engine failure, analysts said, noting that this is a further indication that the WS-10 engine has become very reliable.
China's stealth fighter jet, J-20, which was also developed by the AVIC's Chengdu branch, could also use the WS-10 engine in the future, Wei said. China is also developing the WS-15, a more powerful turbofan engine, for the J-20, media reported. But this next generation engine might need more time to enter service, analysts said.
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