- Key Points - New ground-level images (see above) have emerged online appearing to show China's sixth-generation "J-36" tactical jet, offering the closest look yet at its unique design.
-The photographs, though of questionable quality and possibly retouched, seem to confirm several key features, including a side-by-side two-seat cockpit, a dorsal air intake for a third engine, and three open internal weapons bays on its underside.
- The aircraft's large size reinforces its description as a "hybrid" heavy fighter or tactical bomber.
-While the prototype first flew in December 2024, open-source assessments suggest the J-36 could enter operational deployment as soon as 2030.
We Just Got A Glimpse of China’s Epic J-36 Stealth Tactical Jet
New images Photos have just emerged online that appear to show China’s sixth-generation “J-36” tactical jet. The photographs, which follow the publishing of a series of videos of the jet in flight, show the next-generation aircraft parked on the ground.
The photographs offer a close-up look at China’s unique design, which includes a canopy wing design and side-by-side seating in the cockpit. The images appear to show three open ventral weapons bays, which are the weapons compartments located on the underside of the aircraft.
The aircraft's size is immediately notable, too, with some reports already describing it as a "hybrid" between a tactical bomber and a very heavy fighter.
Where Did the Image Come From?
While the newly surfaced images are generating some buzz, there are some curious aspects of them that raise questions. The shots appear to have been captured from some distance, possibly using a long lens. The images are clearly taken from the ground, and the quality suggests that the image is also a photograph of a photograph, or a screen capture of an image that was displayed on a computer monitor.
Beyond the visual distortion, there are also some interesting inconsistencies at the rear of the aircraft. In the area around the dorsal air intake (engine air intake located on the top side of the aircraft), the image appears to have been retouched or blurred.
Additionally, the aircraft’s main landing gear region features shadowy sections, possibly indicating that the image was edited to hide an object or feature that was previously visible.
Despite these visible edits and anomalies, the photographs appear to be real, and seem to have been taken at the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation’s primary facility.
If it does prove to be authentic, the photographs confirm that the J-36 does feature the rumored side-by-side cockpit seating layout, similar to Russia's Su-34 .
The photograph also appears to show two heads-up displays. The three open ventral bay doors, with two smaller doors flanking a central larger bay, also suggest that the bomber features multiple internal weapons compartments.
J-36: When Will It Be Ready?
China's Chengdu J-36 has been in development Since at least 2018, with formal pre-search beginning in January 2019 when Chengdu Aircraft Corporation started laying the groundwork for a sixth-generation fighter, aiming for realization by 2025. By late 2021, scaled prototype designs were undergoing wind-tunnel and mock-up testing.
The first publicly observed flight occurred on December 26, 2024, when photographs and videos captured the prototype in test sorties over Chengdu.
Flights were also observed in March and April 2025.
Open-source assessments suggest that the J-36 could enter deployment in the near future, possibly as soon as 2030.
About the Author:
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments' approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society. His latest book is The Truth Teller: RFK Jr. and the Case for a Post-Partisan Presidency .
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