Chinese AIM120D??

Folks are debating this latest Chinese AAM -- is a Chinese version of AIM120D or a PL-12 derivative optimized for internal-weapons-bay as featured by the J-20.

It was reported that 607 Institute has been developing a new activing radar homing AAM comparable to American AIM-120D (dubbed PL-15?). Recent photos showed a new type of missile being tested onboard a J-11B fighter. Compared to PL-12 of the same class, the missile features stablizing fins and tailfins with reduced wingspans, suggesting its design is optimized for internal carriage by the 4th generation fighter such as J-20. PL-1X may also features improved guidance system (including duplex datalink and new active/passive dual mode seeker with enhanced ECCM capability) as well as a bigger motor which gives it a longer range (~100km?). There was a speculation that PL-1X is actually a new anti-radiation AGM comparable to American HARM, but this has yet to be confirmed.

Photos of J-20's weapon bay

PLAMC testing new VBSS body armor vest for boarding team

Clear Duty VBSS body armor vest is being tested by the PLAMC for boarding party. It's made by a local Chinese private company. VBSS stands for Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure operation.

The CD VBSS is more comfortable and offers quick-release that the standard issued Type 06 body armor lacks. The quick-release is a life saver if a boarding team member fall into the water. All he needed it is just pull the quick-release to remove the vest (which will be loaded down with hard plates, ammo, pistol, comm & other gears) and swim to the surface.

The vest uses Kevlar material and has large SAPI size hard plate pocket in the front and back. --- Timothy Yan

123 AF-31FN engines ordered by China

The continuation of AL-31FN import could be interpreted a number of ways, ranging from the indigenous WS-10A turbofan is not primetime ready, J-10A’s production schedule is too tight to allow deviations, to the reservation of all WS-10As for J-11's production runs.

China Signs $500 Million Russian Jet Engine Deal, Vedomosti Says
By Jack Jordan - Jul 3, 2011 10:07 PM PT

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-04/china-signs-500-million-russian-jet-engine-deal-vedomosti-says.html

China’s Ministry of Defense signed a contract to buy Russian aircraft engines worth $500 million in early June, Vedomosti reported, citing an unidentified personsource close to Russia’s state arms-selling agency and an unidentified manager of an aviation company.

The contract is for 123 AL-31FN engines by 2013, the first 13 of which will be delivered later this year, the newspaper said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jack Jordan in Moscow at jjordan22@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Torrey Clark at tclark8@bloomberg.net

Welcome to the jungle

While spending three months in the jungle is not fun, but the PLAAF airborne is no longer "just a light infantry", expect to see more those long-range drops in coming years.

Airborne troops finish 1st organic field training in tropical rainforest

(Source: PLA Daily) 2011-07-04

The officers and men let out hurray at the end of training. (PLA Daily/Liu Peng)

On June 27, an airborne troop unit of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) finished the first organic training in a tropical rainforest which lasted for more than three months.

In order to meet the requirements of transformation from implementing a single operational mission to fulfilling diversified military tasks, the troop unit in recent years regularly took its troops to unfamiliar areas on the plateau in northwest China and the islands in southeast China to conduct adaptive training and challenge the operational capacity limits of the personnel and equipment.

Earlier this year the troops were organized to head to a tropical jungle at an altitude of more than 1,200 meters near the Tropic of Cancer to carry out training on 40-plus subjects including camouflage, shooting and obstacle-crossing in jungle, mountaineering and field survival under satellite surveillance.

During the drill, in the airtight tropical rainforest with a slope of as much as 80 degrees, special operation members each carrying a 40-kg load on the back carved out their way with machetes, climbed cliffs, crossed the valleys, and waded across rapids.

A batch of new-type IT equipment appeared in the field training. An unmanned aircraft carried out aerial reconnaissance of the "enemy’s" situation and precisely located the target, the battlefield TV reconnaissance unit sneaked into the forefront of the "enemy" to send back real-time three-dimensional reconnaissance scenes, and the officers and men utilized home-made Beidou communication system to make accurate positioning and timely transmit battlefield information. With the new-type IT equipment, the troops’ information support capability is greatly improved.

By Yang Min and Tan Jie

Chinese "Global Hawk" in PLAAF color.

However, until today there has been no confirmation to suggest that the PLAAF is adopting this high high-altitude UAV -- this recent photo of Xianglong in PLAAF color suggests that the program is advancing to next stage of development.

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Thursday, November 12, 2009

Xianglong UAV conductes its maiden flight.

Guizhou Aviation Group (GAV) announces (here) and (Here) that the maiden flight of the Xianglong UAV has been successfully conducted on November 7th 2009 at 12:21 PM. The maiden flight took place at the Anshun airport and lasted 18 minutes.

Xianglong, or the Chinese HQ-4 Global Hawk, is a joint venture between the Guizhou Aviation Group and the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute (CADI). It was first unveiled at the 2006 Zhuhai air show and completed its high-speed taxing tests in 2008. The fuselage, vertical and power plant of the Xianglong was designed by the GAV and the job of testing, manufacture and final assembly was handled by the CADI.

Leaving Zhanjiang

The Luhu pair is back!

After undergo a prolonged period of modernization, both DDG 112 (Harbin) and DDG 113 (QingDao) are ready to rejoin the fleet.

Not sure any changes to the power plant, combat information center (CIC) or the Anti Submarine Warfare (ASW) suite but there is a few new features that is notable:

The removal of 4x Type 76A twin 37mm CIWS with a pair of Type 730.

A new 100 gun turret.

The huge "God's Eye" L-band 3D air search radar which gave the Luhi class its unique look on top of the aft helicopter hanger has been removed.

The number of ASM seems to have doubled from 8 to 16.

The new look as featured in the latest issue of "Naval & Merchant ships"

The good ole days