The Zhuhai Air Show (south of China), near Macau, is held every two years. It is an opportunity for China to present its latest advances in the field of civil and military aviation.
Stealth fighters opened China's largest air show on Tuesday, where drones are also in the spotlight, an opportunity for the country to showcase its growing military power to potential customers and rivals.
For several decades, the Asian giant has been strengthening its air defense capabilities, particularly to deal with the American military presence in the South China Sea or around Taiwan, which it considers to threaten its interests. In recent years, China has sent military planes almost daily to patrol the island of Taiwan, which it claims, in order to protest against the “separatist” policy pursued by the island authorities.
The Zhuhai Air Show (south of China), near Macau, is held every two years. It is an opportunity for China to present its latest advances in the field of civil and military aviation. Star of the 2024 edition, the new Chinese stealth combat aircraft, the J-35A, will be presented to visitors.
Its participation in the show suggests that it could enter service soon. That would make China the only country besides the United States to have two stealth fighters in action, experts say. Smaller and lighter than the Chinese J-20 stealth fighter jet already in service, the J-35A has a similar design to the American F-35.
Attack drone
Several J-20s conducted a demonstration flight Tuesday morning, flying in formation against gray skies. Having these two models available would significantly improve “the ability (of the Chinese army) to carry out offensive operations in very dangerous and contested environments”, indicated military expert Wang Mingzhi, cited by the official China news agency new.
The show will for the first time have an area specifically dedicated to drones, a sign of their growing use in war zones around the world. The SS-UAV, a huge drone that can launch swarms of smaller drones for reconnaissance missions or to carry out strikes, will be presented in Zhuhai, according to the Hong Kong daily South China Morning Post.
The United States announced sanctions in October targeting two Chinese companies it said were linked to the production of drones used by Russia in its war in Ukraine. China calls for respecting the territorial integrity of all countries, including Ukraine, but has never publicly condemned Russia for the invasion of its Ukrainian neighbor.
Space shuttle
Bilateral commercial, diplomatic and military relations have even strengthened since then and Sergei Shoigu, the former Russian Defense Minister, now Secretary of the Russian Security Council, is due to go to the Zhuhai trade fair this week.
This year's edition is mainly focused on the military sector, as it coincides with the 75th anniversary of the Air Force of the People's Republic of China. But China's booming space industry will also showcase some of its latest advances.
A Chinese-made reusable space shuttle model will be presented at the show, according to New China. Called Haoloong, it is designed to be launched by a commercial rocket and then dock with China's Tiangong (“Heavenly Palace”) space station.
“It can re-enter the atmosphere, fly and land horizontally” which allows “it to be recovered and reused”, underlined New China.
For several decades, China has devoted enormous resources to its space program in order to catch up with the major powers in the sector, the United States and Russia.
