Photos of what appears to be a new Chinese fighter design, shown heavily shrouded and purportedly en route to a stress-testing facility somewhere in China, appeared on the Internet starting in late June, reported the Washington Free Beacon. Some analysts believe the aircraft is yet another new stealthy fifth generation fighter, known as the Shenyang F-60, currently under development, according to the Free Beacon‘s July 17 report. The fact that China may be working on a second advanced fighter in addition to the stealthy J-20 that came to light in early 2011, however, “should not come as a surprise,” said former Air Force intelligence chief David Deptula. “The [People’s Liberation Army Air Force] has a very comprehensive planning process, and may have several advanced aircraft in various stages of design and development,” stressed Deptula.
If the Air Force is in line for a big budget bump from President Donald Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget in 2027, the head of Air Combat Command said he would make aircraft spare parts his top spending priority—but cautioned that more money to buy parts won’t equal a…
