What could be a major leak out of China features by far the clearest pictures yet of Shenyang Aircraft Corporation’s (SAC) J-XDS, also referred to unofficially as the J-50. This aircraft is a heavy sixth-generation stealth fighter design that features no tails, thrust vectoring, and a very sleek profile. It also has unique features, in particular its swiveling wingtip control surfaces. You can read our past analysis on this aircraft here and here.
While these images could very well be a fabrication, they appear to match very closely with other, less detailed views we have seen of this aircraft. As it sits now, we have to take them as unconfirmed, but there are no indications outright that they are not authentic. The only discrepancy we could find between these new images and past ones is the lack of an air data boom on the jet’s nose. But after further review of other lower-quality imagery of this aircraft from very recently, the boom appears to have been removed. This could also be a second airframe that is now in flight test that is not equipped with one, which is not uncommon for the early development phase of air combat aircraft. It’s also worth noting that we still do not know if these are technology demonstrators or more production representative designs. Considering the speed at which China is moving in terms of air combat systems development, it wouldn’t be surprising if the latter were true.
Up until recently, we have gotten mostly underside and silhouette views of this aircraft. Meanwhile, its super-heavy counterpart, commonly referred to as the J-36, which broke cover on the same days as the J-XDS back in December 2024, has been seen in much higher detail. One shot in particular of that aircraft was similar to this one, taken directly into the airfield where it is produced and based for flight testing.
These fresh images, if authentic, provide a new, detailed look at the sides of this exotic aircraft. Details that are very visible include its F-22-like 2D thrust vectoring exhausts, which include fine serrated edges around the exhaust housing, a common detail on stealth fighter aircraft.
Its very long diamond-shaped nose that features a deeply blended canopy is also very apparent in the images. The aircraft’s intakes are also seen in greater detail here, which are trapezoidal and feature a diverterless supersonic inlet (DSI) arrangement.
Based on these photos, assuming they are not fabricated, the aircraft is conclusively operated by a single pilot — a detail that has remained unclear until now. The electro-optical target system (EOTS) enclosure is also visible under the nose, as are the aircraft’s side bay-like features that still remain something of a mystery due to their small size. Small bulges in the profile of the aircraft’s spine are seen behind the cockpit. It is not clear what this would be for, but they do look like small auxiliary inlet doors that are open. If they were fixed bumps, they would likely house apertures for a distributed aperture system (DAS) or other sensor/communications aperture.
And, of course, the aircraft’s trademark swiveling wingtips, which would help to keep the inherently very unstable tailless aircraft pointed in the right direction, especially during slow flight and hard maneuvering, are seen deflected downward.
Overall, the images are quite remarkable and give us a better idea of what this aircraft actually looks like from a side view in good light. We’ll have to see if the photos end up proving to show the real McCoy, but for now they are a welcome revelation.
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