PLA Navy runs South China Sea drills with newest J-11B fighter jets

[beijingwalker]

PLA Navy runs South China Sea drills with newest J-11B fighter jets​

• More than 10 fighter jets from PLA’s Southern Theatre Command took part in ‘round-the-clock’ training exercise, state media reports
• Video footage of J-11B with grey radar dome sparks speculation of avionic upgrade

Published: 9:44pm, 23 Mar, 2022

PLA jets take part in a drill celebrating the armed forces’ 91st anniversary in 2018. Photo: Weibo

The Chinese navy intensively exercised its upgraded J-11B fighter jets over the disputed South China Sea following mass delivery of the advanced model, according to state media reports.
More than 10 fighter jets from the People’s Liberation Army’s Southern Theatre Command participated in “round-the-clock” training and battled in four-versus-two and two-versus-two formation, official broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) reported.

CCTV’s footage of the drill showed a J-11B returning from the exercise and entering its hangar, with the aircraft featuring a grey radar dome, unlike the black sported by the original versions.
The change in colour has sparked speculation about its being a sign of a radar upgrade to a hi-tech active electronically scanned array (AESA) system, according to nationalist tabloid Global Times. The computer-controlled AESA system allows jets to communicate better, as well as detect targets earlier and at longer range.

The J-11B is a significantly modified version of the Soviet-designed Sukhoi Su-27 fighter from state-owned Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC). It remains the most advanced fighter jet operated by the PLA Navy’s land-based aviation force, alongside some Su-30MKK imported from Russia in the 2000s.

The J-11B fighter jet at the Changchun air show, in northeastern China’s Jilin province. Photo: AFP

The twin-engine multirole J-11B has a range of 1,500km, extendable with additional fuel tanks. It can also carry advanced weapons like the PL-10 short-range combat missile and the PL-15 beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile.

This makes the jet an ideal instrument to defend Beijing’s vast claims to the South China Sea, which stretches 2,000km from its southernmost island of Hainan to cover almost the entire span of the waterway – in claims contested by five southeast Asian neighbours.

The J-11Bs of the PLA Air Force were photographed as deployed on Woody Island, a Chinese-controlled military base in the disputed Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.

In 2014, a J-11 fighter jet reportedly came within 10 metres of an American P-8A Poseidon submarine-hunter about 220km east of Hainan, with the PLA warplane flying past the P-8’s nose and performing a barrel roll at close range.
The J-11 series is based on the Sukhoi-27 following a 1998 agreement. And the J-11B is a significantly modified version with special home-made avionics, or electronics as applied to aviation.

The SAC has delivered a massive number of J-11B, but mostly to the Chinese air force. It has further developed a more powerful J-16 for the force, based on the twin-seat J-11B.

The SAC was first seen building a J-11B model for the PLA Navy as early as 2010. It also produces for the navy the J-15, a ship-based fighter for its aircraft carriers.

The company has also been replacing the engines on the J-11Bs, both for the air force and navy, with the home-made WS-10 series – a thrust-vectoring engine that offers much higher manoeuvrability rivalled only by the US and Russia.

PLA Navy tests new J-11B fighter jets with South China Sea drills

Video footage of J-11B with grey radar dome sparks speculation of upgrade for better target detection and coordination.

www.scmp.com

 

[beijingwalker]

J-11B Fighters – China ‘Ditches’ Its Aging Pulse-Doppler For New, Powerful Radars; Uses Them For Military Drills In SCS​

BySakshi Tiwari

March 24, 2022

In late 2019, a new variant of China’s J-11B fighter jet, which had served the PLA Air Force for decades made its public debut amid much fanfare. The modified variant of J-11, details of which remain classified, participated in the latest drills held in the South China Sea.

The three-day drill is significant as it was held in the backdrop of a US admiral revealing that China has fully militarized at least three of several islands that it built in the South China Sea.

On its part, China has defended its right to deploy weapons on its own sovereign territory. Pertinently, it claims almost the entire sea as its territory.

The highlight of these drills, however, was the upgraded J-11B. The PLA Navy has received an updated variant of the J-11B fighter jet, with at least one of them taking part in a recent mock combat drill over the South China Sea, Global Times reported.

The round-the-clock flight training, organized by a brigade linked with the PLA Southern Theater Command Navy Aviation Force, included free aerial battle and offensive and defensive tactical exercises, informed the PLA Southern Theater Command’s Weibo account.

Shenyang J-11 – Wikipedia
The confrontational training took place over the South China Sea and involved more than ten fighter jets in mock engagements of four-versus-two and two-versus-two, according to a report by state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV).

https://twitter.com/x/status/1506526063249264640

A J-11B fighter aircraft was seen returning from the drills and entering its hangar. Observers pointed out that this J-11B featured a grayish-white radar dome rather than the black radar domes found on other J-11Bs.

This is not the first time this aircraft was part of military drills. In February this year, three upgraded J-11Bs were seen attached to the PLA Northern Theater Command Air Force’s “Eagles in East Liaoning,” an elite unit that conducted night-time combat alert drills during the Chinese spring vacations, as previously reported by EurAsian Times.

J-11B: From Doppler To AESA Radar​

Similar variations as observed in the recent footage have been noted since 2019, when the J-11Bs with black radar domes began moving to white ones, according to eastday.com, a Shanghai-based news source.

The color shift to the radar dome could suggest that the J-11B’s radar has been upgraded, possibly moving from the previous Pulse-Doppler radar to the modern Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar.

As compared to the Pulse-Doppler radar, the AESA scans with more precision as the radio waves can be blasted out in several directions at the same time using AESA radar technology. It provides more tactical information to its user by scanning at different frequencies.

AESA radars have a longer range, are capable of detecting even the minutest of the objects, and are resistant to jamming. According to analysts, the updated J-11Bs would have a longer detection range, identify more targets, and employ more modern armaments like the PL-10 short-range combat missile and the PL-15 beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles.

Wang Ya’nan, chief editor of Aerospace Knowledge magazine said that China has a big number of J-11B fighter jets, and upgrading them will considerably improve the PLA’s combat capability.

According to analysts, the current maneuvers indicate that both the Air Force (PLAAF) and the Navy (PLAN) would receive the improved J-11B. Further, the PLA Navy’s J-11Bs will also be equipped with China’s domestically built WS-10 engines as was suggested by previous reports.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1503352414535323650

This is significant as China remains locked in a tense battle with its regional rivals and the United States in the South China Sea as well as the wider Indo-Pacific region. A day before the drills started, a US carrier had traversed the Taiwan Strait which triggered angry Chinese aerial activity in Taiwan’s airspace.

Further, Vietnam had said that Chinese drills violated its Exclusive Economic Zone and continental shelf. However, China claims practically the entire South China Sea and has dismissed the accusation of militarization as ‘hype’. Admiral John C. Aquilino, the United States’ Indo-Pacific Commander recently alleged that China had deployed anti-aircraft missile systems and fighter jets in the South China Sea.

J-11B Fighter jet​

Shenyang J-11, also known as Jian-11, is a multi-role fighter aircraft produced by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation in China (SAC).

In China, the J-11 aircraft has had a difficult history. The second batch of the “indigenously made and lawfully licensed” J-11A/Su-27SK was halted after Beijing was accused of breaching co-production agreements with Moscow.

The J-11’s success prompted Beijing to move forward with the development of the J-11B, an improvised and more domesticated version that employed Chinese avionics rather than Russian ones to lessen reliance on Russia.

A type 1474 radar, 3-axis data system, power supply system, emergency power unit, brake system, hydraulic system, fuel system, environment control system, molecular sieve oxygen generating systems, digital flight control system, and a glass cockpit are among the Chinese subsystems on the J-11B.

The J-11B is the backbone of China’s heavyweight fighter jet fleet today, and it is widely regarded as one of the most competent fourth-generation combat jets in service in terms of air-to-air and attack capabilities.

Over 200 of the elite fourth-generation heavyweight fighters are currently in service, with at least 70 in the Navy and at least 140 in the Air Force, however, the actual number is unknown because the planes are built behind closed doors in China and do not require foreign components, according to Military Watch Magazine.

Observers have predicted that the fourth-generation J-11B will develop to a fourth-plus generation level as a result of the enhancements and will remain in active duty with strong competitiveness for a long period.

The exact specifications of the upgraded J-11B are unknown but whatever they may be, one thing is certain: it will add more value to the PLA Air Force, and the greater the number of aircraft upgraded, the longer their lifespan will be.

J-11B Fighters - China 'Ditches' Its Aging Pulse-Doppler For New, Powerful Radars; Uses Them For Military Drills In SCS

In late 2019, a new variant of China’s J-11B fighter jet, which had served the PLA Air Force for decades made its public debut amid much fanfare. The modified variant of J-11, details of which remain classified, participated in the latest drills held in the South China Sea. The three-day drill...

eurasiantimes.com

 

[beijingwalker]

Upgraded J-11B fighter jet joins South China Sea exercise​

The Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy has received delivery of an upgraded version of the J11B fighter jet, with at least one participating in a recent mock combat exercise over the South China Sea.

Organized by a brigade affiliated with the PLA Southern Theater Command Navy Aviation Force, the round-the-clock flight training featured free aerial battle and offensive and defensive tactical maneuvers, the PLA Southern Theater Command said in its Weibo account on Monday.

Going into more detail, a China Central Television report said that the confrontational training was held over the South China Sea and featured more than 10 fighter jets, which had four-versus-two and two-versus-two mock battles.

 

[Nuclear Clown]

J-11B Fighters – China ‘Ditches’ Its Aging Pulse-Doppler For New, Powerful Radars; Uses Them For Military Drills In SCS​

BySakshi Tiwari

March 24, 2022

In late 2019, a new variant of China’s J-11B fighter jet, which had served the PLA Air Force for decades made its public debut amid much fanfare. The modified variant of J-11, details of which remain classified, participated in the latest drills held in the South China Sea.

The three-day drill is significant as it was held in the backdrop of a US admiral revealing that China has fully militarized at least three of several islands that it built in the South China Sea.

On its part, China has defended its right to deploy weapons on its own sovereign territory. Pertinently, it claims almost the entire sea as its territory.

The highlight of these drills, however, was the upgraded J-11B. The PLA Navy has received an updated variant of the J-11B fighter jet, with at least one of them taking part in a recent mock combat drill over the South China Sea, Global Times reported.

The round-the-clock flight training, organized by a brigade linked with the PLA Southern Theater Command Navy Aviation Force, included free aerial battle and offensive and defensive tactical exercises, informed the PLA Southern Theater Command’s Weibo account.

Shenyang J-11 – Wikipedia
The confrontational training took place over the South China Sea and involved more than ten fighter jets in mock engagements of four-versus-two and two-versus-two, according to a report by state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV).

https://twitter.com/x/status/1506526063249264640

A J-11B fighter aircraft was seen returning from the drills and entering its hangar. Observers pointed out that this J-11B featured a grayish-white radar dome rather than the black radar domes found on other J-11Bs.

This is not the first time this aircraft was part of military drills. In February this year, three upgraded J-11Bs were seen attached to the PLA Northern Theater Command Air Force’s “Eagles in East Liaoning,” an elite unit that conducted night-time combat alert drills during the Chinese spring vacations, as previously reported by EurAsian Times.

J-11B: From Doppler To AESA Radar​

Similar variations as observed in the recent footage have been noted since 2019, when the J-11Bs with black radar domes began moving to white ones, according to eastday.com, a Shanghai-based news source.

The color shift to the radar dome could suggest that the J-11B’s radar has been upgraded, possibly moving from the previous Pulse-Doppler radar to the modern Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar.

As compared to the Pulse-Doppler radar, the AESA scans with more precision as the radio waves can be blasted out in several directions at the same time using AESA radar technology. It provides more tactical information to its user by scanning at different frequencies.

AESA radars have a longer range, are capable of detecting even the minutest of the objects, and are resistant to jamming. According to analysts, the updated J-11Bs would have a longer detection range, identify more targets, and employ more modern armaments like the PL-10 short-range combat missile and the PL-15 beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles.

Wang Ya’nan, chief editor of Aerospace Knowledge magazine said that China has a big number of J-11B fighter jets, and upgrading them will considerably improve the PLA’s combat capability.

According to analysts, the current maneuvers indicate that both the Air Force (PLAAF) and the Navy (PLAN) would receive the improved J-11B. Further, the PLA Navy’s J-11Bs will also be equipped with China’s domestically built WS-10 engines as was suggested by previous reports.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1503352414535323650

This is significant as China remains locked in a tense battle with its regional rivals and the United States in the South China Sea as well as the wider Indo-Pacific region. A day before the drills started, a US carrier had traversed the Taiwan Strait which triggered angry Chinese aerial activity in Taiwan’s airspace.

Further, Vietnam had said that Chinese drills violated its Exclusive Economic Zone and continental shelf. However, China claims practically the entire South China Sea and has dismissed the accusation of militarization as ‘hype’. Admiral John C. Aquilino, the United States’ Indo-Pacific Commander recently alleged that China had deployed anti-aircraft missile systems and fighter jets in the South China Sea.

J-11B Fighter jet​

Shenyang J-11, also known as Jian-11, is a multi-role fighter aircraft produced by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation in China (SAC).

In China, the J-11 aircraft has had a difficult history. The second batch of the “indigenously made and lawfully licensed” J-11A/Su-27SK was halted after Beijing was accused of breaching co-production agreements with Moscow.

The J-11’s success prompted Beijing to move forward with the development of the J-11B, an improvised and more domesticated version that employed Chinese avionics rather than Russian ones to lessen reliance on Russia.

A type 1474 radar, 3-axis data system, power supply system, emergency power unit, brake system, hydraulic system, fuel system, environment control system, molecular sieve oxygen generating systems, digital flight control system, and a glass cockpit are among the Chinese subsystems on the J-11B.

The J-11B is the backbone of China’s heavyweight fighter jet fleet today, and it is widely regarded as one of the most competent fourth-generation combat jets in service in terms of air-to-air and attack capabilities.

Over 200 of the elite fourth-generation heavyweight fighters are currently in service, with at least 70 in the Navy and at least 140 in the Air Force, however, the actual number is unknown because the planes are built behind closed doors in China and do not require foreign components, according to Military Watch Magazine.

Observers have predicted that the fourth-generation J-11B will develop to a fourth-plus generation level as a result of the enhancements and will remain in active duty with strong competitiveness for a long period.

The exact specifications of the upgraded J-11B are unknown but whatever they may be, one thing is certain: it will add more value to the PLA Air Force, and the greater the number of aircraft upgraded, the longer their lifespan will be.

J-11B Fighters - China 'Ditches' Its Aging Pulse-Doppler For New, Powerful Radars; Uses Them For Military Drills In SCS

In late 2019, a new variant of China’s J-11B fighter jet, which had served the PLA Air Force for decades made its public debut amid much fanfare. The modified variant of J-11, details of which remain classified, participated in the latest drills held in the South China Sea. The three-day drill...

eurasiantimes.com

I think you're speaking about the J-11D with AESA radar, which has performed, together with the J-10C, the Falcon Strike 2 drills opposing the 701 Fighter Squadron of the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF). This Thai unit operates eight Saab JAS-39C and four JAS-39D Gripens.
J-11D and J-10C performed MUCH better than J-11A and J-10A during Falcon Strike 1 in 2015. In both cases, the JAS-39C used outdated AIM-9L Sidewinder : In 2015, the Gripen had a clear advantage, slaughtering the J-11A and J-10A, during Falcon Strike 2, with the AESAs, the J-10C/J-11D had a significant advantage.
Once the exercise transitioned to beyond visual range (BVR) combat, the superiority of the JAS-39 became readily apparent. The Swedish aircraft shot down 41 Su-27s over a period of four days with a loss of only nine JAS-39s despite Gripens only had the Ericsson PS-05/A PESA radar and outdared AIM-120B ranging 80km. Gripen's small radar cross section prevailed over the much bigger copies of the Su-27 and the IAI Lavi that are the J-11D and J-10C with AESA radars.

In the wake of Falcon Strike2, RTAF decided to upgrade with the Gripen-E's SELEX Raven AESA as well as dropping the 30 years old versions of the Sidewinder and the AMRAAM for the Diehl IRIS-T and the MBDA Meteor... There might be upgrades in EW systems.

It has to be noted that the J-10C, J-11D use the same radar as the FC-31 Gyrfalcon and JF-17 block.3.
Shenyang has also declared that they renounced equipping the FC-31 with Rafale-styled baked-in radar absorbing materials and were returning to the same coating as J-20...
but... Pictures taken from landing show a coating that went away in the tail area where you see the "Kevlar" from the airframe directly under the coating...
Visibly, neither Chengdu nor Shenyang got that between the airframe and the coating, F-35 as several cm of RAMs, and that the Dassault material is just more advanced than the US one so you don't need a coating over it...
In fact, when situation was worsening over some disputes, USAF B-1Bs and B-52Hs were painted with the F-22/35 and B-2 coatings... For sure, J-20 and FC-31 have reduced cross sections thanks to geometry and coatings, but I'm not too surprised that highly customized Indian Su-30MKI could detect J-20 flying over occupied Tibet.
When it comes to the PS-05/A, it's just an upgraded version of the Sea-Harrier's radar, so, stating that this near 40 years old cow brings some advantages over the latest PLAAF brand new AESA radar...

When it comes to the US DoD, they know well how to arrange worst cases scenarios for drills or war games where even Iran sunk 3 full carrier strike groups, or USAF gets wiped out by the Russian Su-35 which can't even enforce air superiority over Ukraine... A disastrous operation for USMC : when the kill ratio ends with less that 87 enemies killed for 1 Marines : they need better body armours... These are just excuses to increase budget and, in the end, USA spends as much in the DoD as the 9 next countries, then they have many other agencies and pensions are not included
It's a long way to the top if you wanna rock'n'roll ::::