China’s first series-production Chengdu J-20 fighter is getting ready for a first flight.

The initial operational date for the J-20 is estimated at 2018. Now, with this production copy “2101” emerging out of the thick Chinese smog,  perhaps we should revisit the 2018 date.

The Chengdu J-20  is a Stealth, twin-engine, fifth-generation fighter aircraft prototype being developed by China’s Chengdu Aerospace Corporation for the Air Force (PLAAF). The J-20 made its first flight on 11 January 2011.

Since 2008 the PRC has worked to design and manufacture fifth generation concepts, both for its own use and to sell on a global scale. Two companies in China have worked on designs: the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (J-20) and the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (J-31). Both are subsidiaries of the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).