China tests new KJ-600 Tactical Airborne Early Warning Aircraft.

In March 2024, images revealed on the Chinese social media platform Weibo shed light on the KJ-600, China's next-generation Airborne Early Warning (AEW) aircraft, intended for deployment from the aircraft carriers of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). Inspired by the advanced capabilities of the US Navy's E-2 Hawkeye, the KJ-600 marks a significant step in China's naval ambitions, offering round-the-clock airborne surveillance, and command and control capabilities.
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China KJ-600 Tactical Airborne Early Warning Aircraft (Picture source: China Social Media)

Developed by the Xi'an Aircraft Company, the KJ-600 project began flight trials in the fall of 2020. Equipped with turboprop engines, the aircraft features a robust design with a spacious fuselage capable of accommodating a team of four to six members, essential for prolonged surveillance and command missions. The most striking feature of the KJ-600 is its large dorsal radome, likely housing a state-of-the-art Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system.

The unveiled images show the aircraft in a gray color scheme, featuring a straight high-wing configuration, a four-fin tail, and a tricycle landing gear - characteristics that underscore China's ambitions to enhance its maritime surveillance and airborne command capabilities. Despite significant advancements in flight tests, crucial catapult launch and arrested recovery trials for carrier-based operations have not yet been visually confirmed.

According to satellite image analysis, the KJ-600 has a wingspan of 24.4 meters and a length of 18.4 meters, dimensions that testify to its compact design and ability to operate effectively from aircraft carriers. Reports from late 2023 on "intensive testing" involving four to six prototypes indicate that the KJ-600 development program is in an advanced phase, potentially approaching low-rate initial production.

With the planned integration of the KJ-600 into PLAN operations, China is poised to enhance its maritime surveillance and airborne command capabilities, thus strengthening its strategic posture in the seas. This next-generation aircraft symbolizes China's technological progress in defense and its commitment to maintaining a robust and versatile maritime presence.

The KJ-600's performance as a deck-based aircraft remains a question, particularly compared to American aircraft carriers using a CATOBAR (Catapult Assisted Take-Off But Arrested Recovery) configuration which facilitates its launch. There is yet no evidence that the KJ-600 can operate on China's current two aircraft carriers, the Liaoning and the Shandong, which use ski-jump decks without catapults. China's third aircraft carrier is expected to feature a flat deck with electromagnetic catapults, compatible with the KJ-600, according to analysts.

The KJ-600 likely uses two WJ-6C turboprop engines but could switch to the newer WJ-10 engines in the future. Its fuselage design is very compact, making it nearly as long as the carrier-based J-15 fighter jet and the Z-18 early warning helicopter. The KJ-600 carries a radar atop its medium fuselage, similar to China's previous early warning aircraft KJ-2000 and KJ-500, but it is not yet known if this radar rotates.

With the planned integration of the KJ-600 into PLAN operations, China is poised to significantly enhance its maritime surveillance and airborne command capabilities, thus strengthening its strategic posture in the seas. This next-generation aircraft symbolizes China's technological progress in the field of defense and its commitment to maintaining a robust and versatile maritime presence.