The Shaanxi KJ-500 (Chinese: 空警-500; pinyin: Kōngjǐng Wǔbǎi; literally: "Air Warning 500") is a third-generation airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft used by the

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People's Liberation Army Air Force The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF; ), also known as the Chinese Air Force (中国空军) or the People's Air Force (人民空军), is an aerial service branch of the People's Liberation Army, the regular armed forces of the Peo ...

. It was built by Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation, and is based on the Y-9 airframe.

Development

Since the beginning of the 21st century, the detection range and the accuracy of airborne radars have been increasing, and fighters equipped with various types of air-to-air missiles and low-altitude cruise missiles continue to improve in performance, creating a demand for a more capable AEW&C. To address the above issues, China started the development of the KJ-500, its third AEW&C, in the late 2000s. The KJ-500 was required to have three important features, which are good detection capability, good identification ability, and quick responsiveness. The KJ-500 was also required to be the core force of the information combat system, its equipped technology has four major characteristics, which are networking, multi-functionality, high-integration, and lightweight. The aircraft carries a fixed dorsal radome containing three

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radar arrays for 360-degree coverage, and is said to be more efficient than the two-planar 'balance beam' array design used on the earlier

KJ-200 The KJ-200 (Chinese: 空警-200; pinyin: Kōngjǐng Liǎngbǎi; literally: "Airwarn-200") NATO reporting name: Moth or Y-8 Balance Beam system, is an Airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) program developed by Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation. ...

. Production of older AEW&C types reportedly ceased production in 2018 in response to the KJ-500 reaching full operational capability.

Variants

;KJ-500: Base variant ;KJ-500A: Improved variant with an aerial refueling probe. Debut in

Zhuhai Airshow China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition (), also known as the Airshow China () or Zhuhai Airshow (), is the largest airshow and aerospace trade expo in China. It has been held in even years in Zhuhai, Guangdong since 1996. His ...

2022.

Operators

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People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

- 8 KJ-500 *

People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force The People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force (PLANAF; ) is the naval aviation branch of the People's Liberation Army Navy. Overview Historically, the PLANAF's main role has been to provide the navy's warships with air defense coverage. Part of ...

- 8 KJ-500H

Specifications

Limited performance parameters of KJ-500 have been published as follows: * Max speed (km/h): 550 * Max range (km): 5700 * Max endurance (h): 12 * Max takeoff weight(tons): 77 * Range against fighter sized targets (km): 470

References

{{Chinese Military Aircraft AWACS aircraft 2010s Chinese military aircraft Aircraft first flown in 2013 High-wing aircraft Four-engined turboprop aircraft