On March 13th, “China’s PLA Daily” reported that the PLA Air Force recently issued a new rule that Chinese Air Force aircraft will be coated with low-visibility coatings and standardized markings, including the national flag, the Chinese Air Force badge and the Red Cross logo. The move aims to make Chinese fighter jets hard to be detected by the naked eyes or military radars.
According to Chinese military analyst Qi Lin, “reducing the observability of military aircraft to reduce visible light detection is a combat requirement and development trend, and it also demonstrates the combat capabilities of military aircraft”. It is worth noting that before this new regulation was promulgated, China had already tested a new stealth coating on J-16 fighters (beginning in 2018). At the beginning of 2019, a J-16 fighter wearing a new silver-gray coating was exposed. According to CCTV, Jiang Jiaji, a Chinese pilot who won the “golden helmet” for three times, said that in the January exercise this year (2019), J-16 fighters used a layer of silver-gray painted paint, similar to an invisible coating, with a certain stealth ability, it is almost invisible to the naked eyes or electromagnetic equipment. After more than a year of testing and improvement, the latest J-16 is wearing a dark gray jacket instead of the original blue-gray shade, and has replaced the original Air Force badge.
In addition, the new rules also include that national flags and other marks must be gradually standardized on active and future fighters. This means that the Chinese Air Force is ready to expand the use of invisible stealth coatings on all aircraft, including fighters, bombers, transports, and special combat aircraft. And this move indicates that the technology is mature and complete and will be used on a large scale. Chinese military experts said that this would improve the overall combat capability of the Chinese Air Force, and it is reported that the new regulations will be gradually implemented in 2020.
The previously exposed J-16 has a low-visibility stealth coating
Some Chinese expert said that all Chinese fighters must have stealth and low visibility capabilities, and the coatings and markings on them are part of how they do this and meet operational requirements. These paints with low detection properties are not a simple combination of colors, but a field with advanced technologies.
According to Qi, China started late in this field as Japan, South Korea and other countries have learnt from the United States and other Western countries the standardization of coatings, markings and designs since the 1990s. China is currently following the footsteps of others, but with the help of the technologies used on J-20 fighters, China has been making rapid progress in this field as China has invested a lot of resources here each year. And it’s rumored that according to sources close to Chinese military’s high level, the stealth coatings on China’s first stealth fighter J-20 are more advanced than Lockheed Martin’s F-22, but not as good as that on F-35 fighters.
The colors of J-15 fighters’ military emblem and national flag are too bright to meet the requirements of low detection
Furthermore, it is reported the latest batch Chinese navy’s J-15 carrier-based aircraft is getting a new green primer instead of the previous yellow spray paint. Some reports speculate that this is a new anticorrosive material that can enhance the performance of aircraft. The J-15, which is being assembled by the Shenyang Aircraft Company of China Aviation Industry Corporation, can be seen in a set of photos posted on its official website, covered with a green primer.
According to several Chinese reports, the previous J-15 fighters used a yellow primer. However, due to long-term exposure to seawater, salt fog, sweltering weather, and exhaust gas, carrier-based aircraft generally have stronger abrasion properties than land-based aircraft, and primers are a key material to protect aircraft structures from corrosion and damage. This will help increase the lifespan of J-15 fighters, reducing maintenance costs and extending service lives.
