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China's J-20S debuts at V-Day military parade; expert highlights innovative significance as world's first two-seat fifth-gen fighter jet

Global Times

By Liu Xuanzun, Fan Wei and Liang Rui Published: Sep 03, 2025 01:18 PM

Fighter jet echelons consisting of the J-16D, J-20, J-35A, J-20S and J-20A were reviewed at China's V-day military parade on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

Military affairs experts told the Global Times that the J-20S is the world's first two-seat fifth-generation fighter jet, and the additional seat is not a simple add up of a pilot, but will bring much higher combat performance, and the aircraft's emergence will have pioneering significance.

"Having one more pilot means having one more mission commander. In the era of fifth-generation fighter jet, the addition of a pilot to the J-20S is like a number ten player in soccer, who could both score points on his own and command the members of the warplane formation in combat," military expert Zhang Xuefeng told the Global Times.

Especially in the future air combat, with the addition of unmanned loyal wingman aircraft, the second pilot on the J-20S may be responsible for sending instructions to the loyal wingmen and controlling them to carry out combat missions; therefore, the two pilots performing the mission together is not a simple add up of a pilot, Zhang noted.

"In the past, the function of the back seat of a two-seat fighter jet was used to train new pilots or for the second pilot to operate airborne weapons, allowing the front seat pilot to focus on flight missions. However, the addition of a second pilot to the J-20S may not have been for these tasks," military affairs expert Fu Qianshao told the Global Times, noting that looking into the future air combat, the pilot added to the J-20S may take on the responsibility of an operator or commander of loyal wingman drones.

"The J-20S is the world's first two-seat fifth generation fighter jet. If it does have the ability to command loyal wingmen, I believe it can even be regarded as the world's first 5.5th generation fighter jet, putting China in a leading position in the field of manned-unmanned cooperative operations in the air," Fu said.

In addition to the two-seat J-20S, another new version of the J-20, the J-20A, also attracted widespread public interests.

"Generally speaking, the upgrade from the J-20 to the J-20A with a new designation means that the J-20 has undergone significant upgrades, and various systems of J-20 may have significant improvements," Zhang said. He noted that from the appearance, it can be seen that the J-20A has some "modifications" in the rear of the pilot's cockpit compared to the J-20. This design can reduce the air resistance of the J-20A and improve the efficiency of supersonic flight. This new design can reflect the continuous improvement of the Chinese military's understanding of air combat and the continuous improvement of the performance of fighter jets, according to Zhang.

Fu also noticed that the J-20A has undergone some changes in appearance, with some areas of the fuselage being enlarged, which creates space for installing more airborne equipment. He said that if more advanced airborne equipment could be carried, it would mean that the J-20A's various subsystems would also be strengthened accordingly.

"Although the J-20 has made multiple appearances at military parades and air shows, every time it makes an appearance, it has new upgrades and improvements, and every time it brings surprises. As the cornerstone of safeguarding the security of China's airspace, the J-20 has been constantly updating and growing," said Fu.