By Kris Osborn, Warrior

(Washington DC) A photograph of the front end of China’s carrier-launched 5th-gen stealth J-35 published in the PRC-government backed Global Times newspaper shows a fighter almost indistinguishable from a US F-35.  Such a similarity, long noticed by observers, is unlikely to surprise Pentagon weapons planners who have referenced the PLA’s “copycat” tendencies for many years. What is significant, however, is the potential accuracy of recent comments in the Chinese state media that the J-35’s radar cross section is that of a “sparrow” or “human palm.” 

The photo in the PRC newspaper shows the J-35 on the deck of China’s famous and recently launched Fujian aircraft carrier, and the front end of the aircraft very closely resembles the front “third” of a US Navy F-35C. The J-35 certainly does look stealthy, as the nose radome and canopy are rounded and blended into a smooth surface intended to generate little or no return signal to ground based radar systems. The front of the F-35 does look slightly larger and more angled than the J-35, yet the front nose-radome radar sections of both aircraft look nearly identical. 

Smooth, Blended Wing-Body 

Interestingly, much of the remaining portions of the J-35 seem to resemble that of an F-22, given that there are two smooth, rounded horizontal tails and a rounded dual-engine fuselage and exhaust area. Overall, the J-35 does look smooth, sleek, round and blended … and therefore very stealthy.  The absence of angled vertical structures, in particular, is by design intended to prevent electromagnetic “pings” from ground radar from having defined shapes and contours to “bounce” off of and generate a return signal or rendering.  Therefore, a quick look at the external configuration of the J-35 would seem to indicate that the PRC comments about its low radar cross section may be “valid.” 

Overall, the J-35 fuselage does look very sleek, smooth and stealthy as it appears more purely “horizontal” than most 5th-gen aircraft. A somewhat horizontal blended wing-body configuration for a fighter jet starts to approach “bomber-like” advanced stealth wherein there are no vertical or protruding structures at all. The J-35 does have “F-35-like” tails protruding up on the back for vectoring and appears to leverage F-35-like fuselage-aligned Divertless Supersonic Inlet air intakes designed to redirect slow-moving air from the engine and effectively shield or “hide” the engine fan from enemy radar.  

More than External Configuration

However, stealth effectiveness depends upon much more than external configuration, as it consists of a host of variables to include thermal management, radar absorbent materials, engine placement and temperature. The closer the temperature of a stealth aircraft is to the surrounding atmosphere, the stealthier it is, as there is no margin of difference for infrared sensors to detect. Thermal management is critical, as stealth aircraft are specifically engineered to emit very little heat, something quite difficult given the engine thrust needed to achieve speeds of Mach 2 or greater. Some aircraft are known to use what’s called “IR suppressors,” essentially technologies designed to minimize or dissipate and decrease “heat” coming from an aircraft. This is also a reason why stealth aircraft have internally buried engines, as engines are of course great sources of heat. 5th-generation fighter jets are built with special “cooling” liquids and technologies designed to keep the aircraft’s avionics and electronics from emitting too much heat.  Coating materials are also critical, as advanced stealth aircraft are known to be built with highly specialized “radar absorbent” materials designed to absorb electromagnetic pings and not simply “bounce” them back to enable ground radar to develop a rendering of the aircraft. 

Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University