A dramatic new video showing China’s futuristic, tailless, triple-engine fighter jet, likely the J-36, flying low over a busy highway has reignited global discussion about the intensifying sixth-generation arms race between the U.S. and China. The aircraft was spotted near the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group’s facility in Sichuan, where it is believed to have been developed.
Inside the J-36. Trijet, Stealth, and a Bold New Design
Military analysts have dubbed the aircraft the J-36, a sixth-generation stealth jet featuring a flying wing design with no vertical stabilizers. The standout feature is its rare trijet configuration – two intakes under the wings and a third mounted dorsally behind the cockpit – breaking away from the more conventional twin-engine setups seen in most modern fighters.
According to defense expert David Cenciotti, the aircraft’s configuration suggests enhanced thrust and redundancy, and its belly appears to house internal weapons bays for long-range missiles. Other key design elements include a streamlined canopy, diverterless supersonic inlets (DSI), and split ruddervators, an unusual aerodynamic feature that implies a focus on stealth, range, and speed.
The latest footage reveals a closer-than-ever view of the aircraft in flight, showcasing its heavy-duty landing gear and what some believe is a side-by-side seating configuration, contrary to earlier assumptions of tandem seating.
Across the Pacific, U.S. Pushes Forward with F-47 and NGAD
While China’s J-36 dominates aviation chatter, the U.S. has not been idle. Last month, President Donald Trump announced that Boeing had secured the contract to build America’s sixth-generation fighter, dubbed the F-47, under the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program. According to Trump, the prototype has been flying for about five years, though the Pentagon has yet to confirm specifics due to the program’s classified nature.
Multiple prototypes from defense giants Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman are believed to have flown already, but the timeline for deployment remains unclear. The F-47 contract, awarded on March 21, only covers the engineering and development phase along with a few test aircraft for evaluation.
China’s Broader Sixth-Gen Ambitions – J-36 and J-50 Emerge
China’s ambitions go beyond just one aircraft. On the same day the J-36 first surfaced in December, images also appeared of another stealthy, tailless jet, believed to be the J-50, developed by the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation. Unlike the J-36’s trijet build, the J-50 is a twin-engine aircraft with a sleeker, more compact frame and appears to use a lambda wing design.
The PLA has not officially acknowledged either aircraft, but China’s state-run Global Times ran a story citing experts who said the sightings suggest significant progress in sixth-generation aviation technology.
April 8 Sighting of J-50 Offers New Clues
The clearest footage yet of the J-50 emerged on April 8, showing the aircraft in flight, its third public appearance. Observers noted several distinctive features – twin engines, 2D thrust vectoring nozzles, tricycle landing gear with a dual nose wheel, diverterless inlets, and possibly an electro-optical sensor bulge beneath the cockpit.
Despite its smaller size compared to the J-36, the J-50’s stealthy shaping, large nose (possibly housing next-gen avionics), and movable wingtips suggest it’s designed for networked, air-dominance missions in contested environments. The design strongly echoes the PLAAF’s J-20 in terms of stealth characteristics.
Visibility by Design?
The emergence of multiple high-quality images and videos, particularly of the J-36 flying low over public roads, has led some observers to speculate that China wants the world to see its progress. While military programs in China have traditionally been shrouded in secrecy, the power of social media, especially as these jets fly over populated areas, has made it nearly impossible to keep things under wraps.
Some compare this to the U.S. advantage of having remote and restricted areas like Area 51 for testing, whereas China’s prototypes often take off from more visible locations.
Who’s Winning the Sixth-Gen Race, Neck-and-Neck or Not Quite?
While the U.S. claims to be ahead, China’s public testing of two separate sixth-gen prototypes, J-36 and J-50, suggests it is rapidly catching up. Some analysts believe Trump’s recent push to accelerate the F-47 program may have been spurred by China’s recent reveals.
That said, the F-47 and NGAD programs remain deeply classified, and the true extent of American progress may not be fully visible. Meanwhile, China’s accelerated public testing of its prototypes creates the impression that it might be in the lead.
Why Does China’s Secret Next-Gen Stealth Plane Have Three Engines? The Answer May Lie in Power Needs, Not Just Thrust
When it comes to stealth fighters, the global design philosophy has been fairly consistent – one or two engines are considered sufficient. That’s why the emergence of China’s newly spotted sixth-generation stealth aircraft, reportedly called the J-36, with a striking three-engine configuration, has stirred considerable curiosity among defense analysts and aviation watchers alike.
The aircraft was seen on December 27 flying over the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation’s airfield (the same firm that produces the fifth-generation J-20 stealth fighter) with a sleek, tailless triangular design optimized for radar evasion, the J-36 bears all the hallmarks of cutting-edge stealth tech. Yet, it’s those three engine nozzles that defy conventional logic.
Why three? There are two prevailing schools of thought.
One view attributes the design to China’s ongoing engine development struggles. While countries like the U.S. rely on incredibly powerful single engines, such as the Pratt & Whitney F135, which delivers 20 tons of thrust for the F-35 – China’s WS-10 engines still trail behind, producing around 15 tons at full throttle. To match the performance of Western fighters, engineers may simply have added a third engine to compensate for lower individual output. If true, this would be less a bold innovation and more a workaround rooted in technological gaps.
But there’s another, more compelling possibility: this design may be purpose-built for power, not just propulsion. Modern combat aircraft increasingly serve as flying sensor hubs, command posts, and potentially even energy weapons platforms. As the Chinese military pushes toward manned-unmanned teaming (where a human pilot orchestrates a swarm of loyal wingman drones) airborne data management, communications, and AI systems demand serious onboard power. Add in the possibility of future integration of directed energy weapons like high-energy lasers or microwave-based systems, and the need for robust power generation becomes clear.
Two engines might offer the thrust needed to fly, but three could ensure the J-36 has the electrical muscle for battlefield dominance.
China’s Sixth-Generation Warfare Doctrine
The J-36 may be a critical chess piece in China’s overarching sixth-generation military doctrine. Beijing’s defense strategy is increasingly shaped by two priorities: developing asymmetric capabilities to counter U.S. superiority, and leapfrogging legacy systems to seize technological leadership in future conflicts.
Unlike earlier eras where China was content with incremental advancements, the sixth-gen race is being approached with a sense of urgency. Manned-unmanned teaming, AI integration, stealth-first designs, and energy-based weaponry are no longer theoretical—they’re rapidly becoming operational imperatives. In this context, the J-36 appears as a platform built not just for air dominance, but for digital and electromagnetic dominance as well.
Its three engines may support more than just energy-intensive weapons or drone coordination. They could power sophisticated jamming suites, advanced sensor fusion, or even satellite uplinks to support long-range command-and-control functions. China is aiming not just for a fighter jet, it’s aiming for a flying battlefield brain.
And with tensions escalating in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific turning into a strategic tinderbox, time may be pushing China to test bold, unconventional configurations like the J-36 to gain a decisive edge before the next global paradigm shift.
J-36 vs. The West: NGAD, FCAS, and the Diverging Paths of Sixth-Gen Evolution
If China’s J-36 is the dragon’s wing, the U.S. and its allies are forging their own predators in the sky – each unique in approach, but unified by similar end goals: survivability, connectivity, and lethality in the most contested environments.
United States – NGAD (Next Generation Air Dominance)
The U.S. Air Force’s NGAD program remains highly classified, but confirmed reports suggest the demonstrator has already flown. Key takeaways include a tailless stealth design, hyper-connectivity, and a focus on teaming with autonomous drones known as Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCAs). NGAD is likely powered by a single or twin advanced adaptive engine, offering variable cycle capabilities to balance thrust, speed, and fuel economy. Notably, the U.S. continues to lean on its unrivaled engine tech to avoid multi-engine complexity.
Europe: FCAS (Future Combat Air System)
Led by France, Germany, and Spain, FCAS aims to field a sixth-gen platform around 2040. The design philosophy shares a lot with NGAD, stealth, drone swarming, sensor fusion, and DEW integration. But FCAS is heavily focused on a “system of systems” architecture, where the fighter is just one node in a larger, interconnected web of UAVs, satellites, and ground assets.
Where J-36 Differs
While NGAD and FCAS appear to bet on next-gen propulsion and high-tech sensors, China’s J-36 seems to hedge its bets with brute-force power output. The triple-engine setup may be a necessary move due to current engine limitations, but it also reflects a different risk calculus: prioritize systems integration and operational viability now, even if it means a heavier, more complex platform.
Hence, while the West builds for refinement, China seems to be building for readiness.
The Last Bit, A Glimpse Into the Future of Aerial Warfare
The J-36 may look like an enigma now, tailless, triple-engined, and shrouded in mystery, but it offers a revealing glimpse into China’s strategic mindset. China is willing to bypass traditional design conventions and take technological leaps, even if those leaps come with complexity and risk.
Its three-engine configuration may very well be born out of necessity, compensating for engine power deficits or limited miniaturization, but it also serves a deeper purpose. It signals a desire to power more than just flight: radar systems, energy weapons, electronic warfare, and the nerve center for drone swarms.
In comparison, the U.S. and its allies are walking a different path, leaning on mature propulsion tech, modularity, and long-range planning to produce sleek, highly refined sixth-gen fighters. But refinement takes time. And time, in the volatile calculus of geopolitical rivalry, can often be the rarest commodity.
As the next-gen arms race accelerates, the J-36 stands as a potent symbol of ambition colliding with urgency. Whether it soars or stumbles, the skies of the 2030s will not be ruled by pilots alone, but by the nations that best blend man, machine, and raw power into the ultimate warfighting symphony.
