The Xi'an KJ-600 is a Chinese
twin-propeller,
quad-tail,
high-wing
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings.
A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing config ...
military aircraft
A military aircraft is any Fixed-wing aircraft, fixed-wing or rotorcraft, rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary military of any type. Some military aircraft engage directly in aerial warfare, while others take on su ...
designed for
cargo
In transportation, cargo refers to goods transported by land, water or air, while freight refers to its conveyance. In economics, freight refers to goods transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. The term cargo is also used in cas ...
and
airborne early warning and control
An airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) system is an airborne radar early warning system designed to detect aircraft, ships, vehicles, missiles and other incoming projectiles at long ranges, as well as performing command and control of the ...
(AEW&C) intended for
carrier-based
A carrier-based aircraft (also known as carrier-capable aircraft, carrier-borne aircraft, carrier aircraft or aeronaval aircraft) is a naval aircraft designed for operations from aircraft carriers. Carrier-based aircraft must be able to launch ...
operations, to be deployed on
Type 003 aircraft carrier
''Fujian'' (18; ) is a Chinese aircraft carrier serving in the People's Liberation Army Navy. It is the third aircraft carrier of the Chinese aircraft carrier programme and the first of the Type 003 class (NATO/ OSD ''Fujian'' class). It succeeds ...
s of the
People's Liberation Army Navy
The People's Liberation Army Navy, also known as the People's Navy, PLA Navy or simply Chinese Navy, is the naval warfare military branch, branch of the People's Liberation Army, the national military of the People's Republic of China. It i ...
from around 2025.
Design and development
The KJ-600 is a
high
High may refer to:
Science and technology
* Height
* High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area
* High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory
* High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift t ...
-
straight wing
The wing configuration or planform of a fixed-wing aircraft (including both gliders and powered aeroplanes) is its arrangement of lifting and related surfaces.
Aircraft designs are often classified by their wing configuration. For example, th ...
aircraft reportedly powered by a pair of
WJ-6 turboprop
A turboprop is a Gas turbine, gas turbine engine that drives an aircraft Propeller (aeronautics), propeller.
A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction drive, reduction gearbox, gas compressor, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propellin ...
engine, and sports a
quad-fin tailplane
A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabilizer, is a small lift (force), lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters ...
,
tricycle gear
Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', that is arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has one or more nose wheels in a single front undercarriage and two or more main wheels slightly aft of th ...
and a large dorsal
radome
A radome (a portmanteau of "radar" and "dome") is a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects a radar antenna (radio), antenna. The radome is constructed of material transparent to radio waves. Radomes protect the antenna from weathe ...
suspected to be fitted with an
AESA-type system. A non-flying model was observed on a concrete
mockup
In manufacturing and design, a mockup, or mock-up, is a scale or full-size model of a design or device, used for teaching, demonstration, design evaluation, promotion, and other purposes. A mockup may be a ''prototype'' if it provides at lea ...
carrier at
Wuhan
Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the List of cities in China by population, eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine National cent ...
electronic testing facility in 2019,
The mockup has a striking external resemblance to the
aftward-folding Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye
The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. This twin-turboprop aircraft was designed and developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s by the Grumman Aircraft ...
.
The aircraft made its
maiden flight
The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets.
In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...
on 29 August 2020. Flight testing continued in 2021. A prototype in flight was spotted by aircraft observers above the testing facility in October 2021.
In late 2023 "intensive trials" were underway with at least four, possibly even six, prototypes, according to Gu Min Chul.
Strategic implication
''
The Diplomat A diplomat is someone who represents a government in its relations with other governments. It may also refer to:
Diplomat, the Diplomat or the Diplomats may refer to:
Media
* ''The Diplomat'' (magazine), a Washington, D.C. online foreign affa ...
'' Rick Joe, who writes extensively on Chinese aviation and naval developments, commented that "
fixed wing
A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a rotor mounted on a spinning shaft generates ...
carrierborne AEW&C are a vital and essential part to any navy that seeks to field a robust and capable
carrier airwing, and their ability to enhance a
carrier group's offensive and defensive capabilities and overall
situational awareness
Situational awareness or situation awareness, often abbreviated as SA is the understanding of an environment, its elements, and how it changes with respect to time or other factors. It is also defined as the perception of the elements in the envi ...
and
network-centric warfare
Network-centric warfare, also called network-centric operations or net-centric warfare, is a military doctrine or theory of war that aims to translate an information advantage, enabled partly by information technology, into a competitive advantag ...
is unmatched by any other platform type that will exist in the near future".
Analyst H. I. Sutton believed the KJ-600 will be a massive boost to the PLA Navy, and "
ce it enters service on the carriers, it will greatly enhance the aerial and maritime situational awareness
.. d the offensive and defensive capabilities of the carrier group", and that "Chinese aerospace and military industry has certainly shown its ability to develop quite modern and capable AEW&C systems for other air, naval and ground applications".
Specifications (KJ-600)
See also
References
{{Chinese Military Aircraft
AEW aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 2020
Carrier-based aircraft
High-wing aircraft
Proposed aircraft of China
Twin-turboprop tractor aircraft
KJ-600