I pity the fools who thought that Block III is doomed without Russian engines. China needs WS-13 as intermediary power plant not only for J-35, but also for drones like GJ-11. It is not vaporware, and this report from Argentina Air Force proves it.
Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Some people can’t stand the appearance of Typhoon since the canards look like small mustaches from the front, but I love the look and the bird flies well.
I think the worries about the engine situation is unfounded. With or without the Russians the situation is not as dire as you think. In the short term RD-93 will suffice. In the long term, China has already planned on inducting the J-35, which will use medium thrust domestic engines, meaning...
If the tide of war does get turned the usual spin doctors can’t spin it any other way because Russia does not operate other types of drones, unlike the situation in Ethiopia.
This is like saying a J-8 is better than a F-22.
“The F-119 engines on the F-22 are capable of massive thrust and thrust vectoring, but experts say that they are very expensive to operate and maintain, use lots of fuel, and could contribute to aircraft crash if there is slight fault with FBW...