On September 9, 2025, an X account titled PLA Military Updates posted a set of photographs that immediately caught the attention of defense analysts worldwide. The images showed the J-20 Mighty Dragon, China’s premier fifth-generation stealth fighter, configured in what the account described as its “beast mode.”
Instead of its usual stealth-optimized loadout, the aircraft carried an arsenal of twelve PL-15 long-range air-to-air missiles and two PL-10 short-range missiles. Eight PL-15s were slung underwing on external pylons, while four PL-15s and two PL-10s were housed internally.
The configuration, while sacrificing stealth, showcased the J-20’s potential as a high-capacity missile truck, particularly when paired with supporting platforms like the KJ-500 airborne early warning aircraft. Under an “A guide B shoot” doctrine, the fighter could launch long-range missiles using external sensor data without activating its own radar, effectively becoming a forward-deployed strike asset in a wider networked battlespace.
This revelation, paired with China’s recent public display of the J-20 at the 2025 Changchun Air Show, where its 300th unit was confirmed in service, marks a turning point. The aircraft is not only maturing technologically but is also becoming a doctrinal centerpiece in China’s airpower strategy.
PL-15
The PL-15 is no ordinary missile. Developed by the China Airborne Missile Academy, it has become the PLAAF’s standard beyond-visual-range weapon since the mid-2010s.
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Propulsion: Dual-pulse solid rocket motor
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Speed: Reported above Mach 5
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Range: Estimated 200–300 km
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Guidance: Active radar seeker with mid-course datalink updates
Its export version, the PL-15E, was sold to Pakistan but with a reduced range of about 145 km. This variant saw combat for the first time in May 2025, during the India–Pakistan conflict. Pakistani J-10C fighters employed the missiles against Indian assets, downing several aircraft including a Rafale. Debris later recovered in India confirmed their use, giving analysts a rare glimpse at real-world performance.
For China, the combat debut of its missile family through a foreign operator served as both a proof of concept and a strategic message: the PLAAF’s long-range kill chain is credible, combat-tested, and potentially exportable to allies.
PL-10
The PL-10, by contrast, is a short-range dogfighting weapon designed by the Luoyang Electro-Optics Technology Development Centre. Entering production in 2013, it features:
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Seeker: Imaging infrared, with ±90° off-boresight angles
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Motor: Thrust-vectoring solid rocket
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Agility: Capable of sustaining 60+ Gs
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Range: Up to 20 km
Its lock-on-after-launch and helmet-mounted display cueing make it a highly flexible weapon, comparable to Europe’s IRIS-T or the U.S. AIM-9X, if not superior in maneuverability.
Together, the PL-15 and PL-10 provide the J-20 with a layered missile envelope: one for long-range, beyond-visual-range engagements, and one for short-range, high-maneuver dogfights.
The J-20 emerged from the J-XX program under the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation. It made its maiden flight in January 2011 and formally entered service in March 2017.
Its design philosophy reflects a balancing act: combining stealth shaping with aerodynamic agility and heavy payload capacity.
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Layout: Canard-delta design with diverterless supersonic intakes
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Size: 21.2 meters long, 13.01-meter wingspan
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Weight: 37,000 kg maximum takeoff
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Performance: Mach 2 top speed, 20,000 m ceiling, 2,000 km combat radius
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Payload: Up to 11,000 kg of weapons
Avionics and Sensors
J-20:
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AESA radar for detection and tracking
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Electro-optical distributed aperture sensors
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Infrared search-and-track (IRST) system
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Glass cockpit with holographic HUD and large multifunction display
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Helmet-mounted display for high off-boresight missile cueing
More importantly, the aircraft is fully integrated into China’s networked battlespace. Data fusion allows seamless coordination with assets like the KJ-500 AEW&C aircraft, which can detect and track targets well beyond the J-20’s radar range. This makes the “A guide B shoot” concept feasible: one platform detects, another fires.
WS-10C to WS-15
Currently, most J-20s fly with Shenyang WS-10C engines, which allow for supercruise and feature serrated nozzles for reduced radar visibility. But the WS-15, under integration, promises 180 kN thrust, greater agility, longer range, and power reserves for future systems such as directed-energy weapons.
In its default stealth mode, the J-20 carries:
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Four long-range missiles internally
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Two short-range missiles in side bays
This keeps its radar cross-section minimal.
But in beast mode, stealth is traded for firepower. By mounting eight additional PL-15s externally, the fighter transforms into a missile carrier capable of overwhelming adversaries through saturation attacks.
Analysts believe this doctrine fits into several mission profiles:
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Air superiority sweeps in permissive airspace
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Massed salvos against enemy aircraft or support assets
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Defensive patrols where volume of fire outweighs stealth
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Coordinated operations with AEW&C aircraft feeding target data
In other words, the J-20 is not bound to stealth. It can toggle between survivability and raw firepower, depending on the tactical environment.
China’s decision to showcase beast mode imagery now is no coincidence. It reflects a broader shift in PLAAF doctrine and regional signaling.
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Confidence in Production: With over 300 aircraft built, the J-20 fleet is now large enough to absorb role specialization. Some can focus on stealth penetration, others on missile-heavy patrols.
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Operational Flexibility: The ability to adapt between stealth and non-stealth roles mirrors U.S. concepts with the F-35’s multirole loadouts, but with heavier emphasis on massed missile salvos.
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Deterrence Messaging: The PLAAF is demonstrating not just that it can match U.S. and allied stealth fighters, but that it can potentially outnumber and outgun them in a contested air campaign.
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Integration with Allies: The combat use of PL-15E by Pakistan showed China’s willingness to proliferate advanced systems selectively, reinforcing partnerships and extending deterrence beyond its borders.
The maturing J-20 fleet has direct consequences for Asia’s airpower balance.
India
India faces a two-front challenge: a PLAAF force with growing J-20 numbers to the north and a Pakistan Air Force equipped with Chinese J-10Cs and PL-15Es to the west. The downing of a Rafale in May 2025 highlighted vulnerabilities, despite India’s investment in French fighters and indigenous Tejas Mk-2 development.
United States and Allies
The U.S. continues to deploy F-35s and F-22s in the Pacific, but the numerical advantage is slipping. With 300+ J-20s already in service, China may soon field the largest operational stealth fleet in the world. For allies like Japan, South Korea, and Australia, this shifts defense planning toward integrated missile defense, networked early warning, and counter-stealth measures.
Export Market
The J-20 itself is unlikely to be exported soon, but the PL-15 family already is. If China continues to build a track record of combat-validated systems, its influence in the global arms market will expand, rivaling traditional suppliers like the U.S. and Russia.
At the 2025 Changchun Air Show, China broke with precedent by displaying the J-20 on static ground, not just in aerial flybys. The symbolism was clear: the aircraft is no longer shrouded in secrecy but is a mature, reliable, and proudly domestic platform.
Observers confirmed that the 300th J-20 was among those displayed, a milestone highlighting the rapidity of China’s industrial output. By contrast, the U.S. produced 195 F-22s before halting production.
For Beijing, the event was a strategic theater: showcasing technological confidence, rallying domestic pride, and sending a message to rivals that the J-20 is now a fleet in depth, not an experimental prototype.
The J-20’s evolution into beast mode underscores a fundamental truth: China is no longer catching up—it is shaping the future of aerial warfare on its own terms.
By combining stealth with the option for overwhelming firepower, integrating advanced missiles with networked sensors, and scaling production to unprecedented levels, the PLAAF has positioned itself as a peer competitor to the U.S. and its allies.
