Chinese air force marks 75th anniversary with footage of ‘deadly combination’ of fighters

China’s air force has released footage of four of its most advanced fighters in a previously unseen formation that military analysts said was designed to secure supremacy at air and sea.

The film included a clip showing the J-20, a fifth-generation stealth fighter, flying in formation with the J-16D, which is designed for specialist electronic warfare roles, along with two multi-role fighters, the original J-16 and the J-10C.

Yue Gang, a retired PLA colonial, said the four fighters had been shown in a “versatile and well-rounded combination [and a] balanced formation with both offensive and defensive capabilities” designed to ensure air and maritime superiority.

Syed Mohd Murtaza, a defence and aviation researcher at India’s Jamia Millia Islamia University, said the formation, particularly the addition of the J-16D, creates a “deadly combination for their adversaries”, adding that the United States used a similar combination of planes.

The J-20 is a fifth-generation stealth fighter, but “its design and size keep it just shy of the advanced F-35 of the United States,” Murtaza said.

However, the J-16D can “top up any of the shortcomings in the J-20 and enhance the capabilities” of the J-10C, disrupting enemy air defences by jamming radars and communications and “blinding enemy systems”.