Flight Trial's of third J-36 sixth-generation fighter prototype conducted on 25 December 2025. | Next Generation Weapons Technology

The Pentagon’s 2025 China Military Power Report signals a major shift in global airpower competition, formally acknowledging China’s rapid advances in sixth-generation fighter development. According to the People’s Liberation Army Air Force is flight-testing multiple “novel tailless” stealth prototypes, sharply narrowing the technological gap with the United States. Analysts point to aircraft tentatively labeled the Chengdu J-36 and Shenyang J-50, featuring flying-wing designs optimized for all-