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A Chinese firm has claimed that they have developed radar technology that can detect stealth jets. The quantum radar was reportedly created by Intelligent Perception Technology, a branch of defence and electronics firm CETC. They claim it is capable of detecting a target at a range of 60 miles and according to the Xinhua news agency, it was successfully tested last month.

In Len Deighton’s book Fighter, he describes the tactics used by the outnumbered English fighter pilots defending against German Luftwaffe bombers in the Battle of Britain: The professional fighter pilot gained height as quickly as he was permitted, and treasured possession of that benefit. He hoped always to spot the enemy before they spotted him and hurried to the sun side of them to keep himself invisible. He needed superior speed, so he positioned himself for a diving attack, and he would choose a victim at the very rear of the enemy formation so that he did not have to...

China’s Chengdu Aircraft Company (CAC) has built more Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) J-20 stealthy jet fighters, with another new aircraft featured in flight on Chinese websites over the past week. This is the second known J-20 LRIP aircraft, after the first example serialed 2101 was shown in late December 2015. They follow two prototypes and six known development aircraft that featured a successive series of refinements. The latest aircraft is painted in shades of gray and carries toned down national insignia, but unlike all previous J-20s has no identifying serial numbers. Reports from China suggest that this latest aircraft...

Russia is the latest country to claim that it has developed a new radar system that can detect stealth warplanes. But the Sunflower low-frequency over-the-horizon radar likely suffers all the same drawbacks that have plagued previous generations of similar sensors. Namely, Sunflower might be able to detect a low-observable airplane. But it probably can’t do so with great fidelity — nor generate a useful targeting track for a missile to follow. Despite Russia’s claim, stealth aircraft are no less difficult to find, target and destroy now than they were before the Sunflower’s introduction. Russian media touted the Sunflower radar in a series...

Russia’s new stealth fighter made an eyebrow-raising surprise appearance on June 5—soaring over the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow ripped from Ukraine in early 2014. The T-50—Russia’s answer to the U.S. Air Force’s F-22—is far from war-ready. Indeed, the twin-engine, radar-evading warplane is suffering such serious design, quality-control, and financing problems that it might never enter frontline service in large numbers. But practical realities may very well be beside the point. The T-50’s flights over territory that once belonged to Russia’s bitter rival Ukraine sends an apparently powerful message, albeit one that doesn’t necessarily hold up to close scrutiny. After flying...

Lockheed Martin is developing a new deck-mounted launcher for the emerging Long Range Anti-Ship Missile engineered to semi-autonomously track and destroy enemy targets at long ranges from both aircraft and surface ships. The weapon, called the LRASM, is a collaborative effort between Lockheed, the Office of Naval Research and the Defense Advanced Project Research Agency, or DARPA. The LRASM, which is 168-inches long and 2,500 pounds, is currently configured to fire from an Air Force B-1B bomber and Navy F-18 carrier-launched fighter. The current plan is to have the weapon operational on board an Air Force B-1B bomber by 2018...

When German engineers from ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, who are building Israel’s next-generation Sa’ar-6 class missile corvette, showed Israel Navy engineers the first blueprints for the strategically vital vessel, the Israelis realized there was a problem. The plans outlined a ship based on Germany’s own sea platforms, and was similar in design. Yet Israel must deal with a far more challenging environment, in which Hezbollah is stockpiling radar-guided shore-to-sea missiles that can target the navy, offshore gas drilling rigs in the Mediterranean and strategically vital sites, such as civilian sea ports – just the type of threat the Sa’ar-6 will be...

Japan's first stealth fighter jet has successfully taken to the skies as the country joins a select group of world military powers wielding the radar-dodging technology. The X-2 jet took off from Nagoya airport in central Japan on its maiden test flight as dozens of aviation enthusiasts watching the event erupted in applause as it lifted off. The single-pilot prototype safely landed at Gifu air base, north of Nagoya airport, after a 25-minute flight with 'no particular problems,' said an official at the defence ministry's acquisition agency. The X-2 jet took off from Nagoya airport in central Japan on its...

The recently announced Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B or B-21) is moving forward with one hidden feature that doesn’t make a lot of sense—its actual price tag. Despite requests by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-AZ), the Air Force has decided against releasing the final contract value to taxpayers and it stands by its decision only to release estimates. Unfortunately, with a cost plus contract, the widely varied estimates that have already been publically released, and the Department of Defense’s long history of drastically underestimating final program costs, Chairman McCain is right to ask the Air Force to...

A newly revealed configuration of sensors set for next-generation destroyer Zumwalt (DDG-1000) could make the ship less stealthy than originally intended, several naval experts told USNI News on Wednesday. According to a new artist’s concept of the configuration from the service, the three ships in the Zumwalt-class will position sensors originally designed to be embedded in the ships’ composite deckhouses on a mast positioned on the front of the deck house, with several more sensors on either side of the deck house. The change will sacrifice some of the benefits of the composite deckhouse design, conceived to make the ship...

Japan's Advanced Technology Demonstrator-Experimental, also known as the ATD-X or X-2, will fly from Nagoya Airport to Gifu Air Base at the end of February, according to the Japanese defense ministry. This will be the first flight of the high-tech testbed and a major step toward Tokyo's plans for a domestic stealth fighter. The Ministry of Defense had planned for the prototype to fly back in 2014, but early last year ministry officials reported that issues with engine restarts had forced a delay to the end of 2015. Reports at the end of last year then suggested a January flight,...

NAGOYA, Japan—Japan on Thursday unveiled its first radar-evading stealth aircraft, aiming to close a gap with neighbors such as China and Russia, which have been flying fighter planes equipped with the technology for more than five years. Confronted with regional challenges such as China building artificial islands in the South China Sea and North Korea testing nuclear devices, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has eased postwar restrictions on the country’s military and is trying to bolster its limited weapons-building capabilities. In the latest move, the Ministry of Defense showed off a test aircraft called X-2 in a heavily guarded hangar...

One of the earliest stealth weapons on record was a stone used by the young Israelite David to kill the Philistine giant Goliath. In the biblical account, David shunned the conventional armaments of his time: sword, helmet, armor. Instead, he went forth with a slingshot and a few stones, kept undetected in a pouch. As any schoolchild knows, one well-aimed fling was all it took to put Goliath down for good. The big guy never saw it coming. It is not clear to what extent David tested his weapon before doing battle, but he presumably had experimented. The first Book...

Sukhoi T-50 fighter climbing after takeoff, 2011. Creative Commons After confronting serious technical and economic difficulties, Russia has dramatically cut back its air force program to field its first radar-evading “stealth” fighter jet. By delaying large-scale acquisition of the Sukhoi T-50 fighter, the Kremlin is tacitly acknowledging a truth that the U.S. military learned decades ago — and that China might also learn in coming years: developing stealth fighters is hard. But fortunately for the Russian air force, and unfortunately for Washington and its allied air arms that are Russia’s chief rivals, Moscow has a backup plan. Instead of counting...

A photo that appears to show China’s J-20 stealth fighter, still coated in yellowish paint typically used before radar absoprbing materials are applied. Photo: Xinhua China “may” have started mass production of its first stealth fighter, the J-20, a state media report suggests. The clue came in slightly blurry photos that Xinhua published on Sunday. They show a plane parked on a runway at an unidentified military airfield, coated in a yellowish paint typically used before the application of radar absorption material. The jet was identical to ones believed to be J-20 prototypes seen in public in previous years. But...

Northrop Grumman has revealed a tantalising image of a new stealth 'superjet' capable of firing laser weapons. The so called 'sixth generation fighter' is rumoured to fly at supersonic speeds, although Northrop Grumman, who are developing it, say the specifications are still secret. The stealth craft is expected to use advanced cooling systems to help disguise its laser systems. Known internally as NG Air Dominance, the craft features laser weapons. The so called 'sixth generation fighter' is rumoured to fly at supersonic speeds, although Northrop Grumman, who are developing it, say the specifications are still classified. ==================================================================================================================== Chris Hernandez, Northrop's...

An overwhelming treasure trove on the early days of stealth technology. A plethora of imagery, blueprints,numerous videos on the early days of stealth technology kept very hush hush on the stealth aircraft pioneered by Boeing. For years, all the aviation world knew about Boeing’s secret stealth project from the 1960s was limited to a name and a single mysterious photo. It seemed like a relic out of time, possessing many stealthy design features that wouldn’t exist until decades later, and even then, only in highly classified black projects. Lockheed's Senior Peg: The Forgotten Stealth Bomber Perhaps because it was built...

For years, all the aviation world knew about Boeing’s secret stealth project from the 1960s was limited to a name and a single mysterious photo. It seemed like a relic out of time, possessing many stealthy design features that wouldn’t exist until decades later, and even then, only in highly classified black projects.

An elephant-riding wildlife guide gets the scare of his life when a tiger educates him in the fine arts of stealth and leaping right at you...

All the PAK FA armament in a single infographic. Not only does the Sukhoi T-50 PAK FA feature stunning maneuverability. As this interesting infographic shows, the fifth generation stealth multi-role combat plane will carry a wide variety of weapons, including air-to-air, air-to-surface and anti-ship missiles. Among those that the PAK FA will be able to carry (internally or externally – hence “stealthy” or not), there are: the Izdelie 810, a derivative of the R-37M designed to kill High Value Targets and AWACS at a distance of 400 km; the K-77M air-to-air missile fitted with an AESA seeker; the KH-35UE anti-ship...