The United States and China are currently the only two nations whose respective air forces operate two distinct “fifth-generation” jet fighters. The United States had a clear lead, developing the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor air superiority fighter, followed by Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. The latter is even produced in three unique variants and has gone on to be the most successful fighter program of the post-Cold War era, with more than 1,100 now in service around the globe.

However, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) and People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) have sought to close the gap, developing two fifth-generation fighters in short order. These include the Chengdu J-20 Mighty Dragon and Shenyang J-35.

There has been speculation that Beijing’s efforts were aided by its state-sponsored hackers, which provided the Chinese aerospace industry with details about both of Lockheed Martin’s aircraft programs. It is hard not to see some Raptor DNA in the Mighty Dragon. ........

© The National Interest