Over the past several days and weeks, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force has been conducting a series of training exercises and maneuvers in preparation for the upcoming Victory Day celebrations in China. In addition to formation flights—which notably featured the new KJ-600—a new test flight of the KJ-3000 was also recorded. This aircraft, currently under development, is set to become the PLA Air Force’s most advanced and powerful airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) platform.
Although the development of the aircraft—based on the Y-20B strategic transport, a variant of the Y-20 equipped with new WS-20 engines replacing the original Russian ones—has been known for years, its first recorded test flight took place only at the end of last year.
Since then, it is believed that additional flights have been carried out, as suggested by recent photographs that have circulated on Chinese social media and were later picked up by Western open-source intelligence outlets.
One of the most notable updates in this regard was the clearest image yet of what is believed to be the only known prototype of the program. The aircraft was photographed at an unidentified airfield, bearing the fuselage number “7821” and still showing its primer coating.
As detailed at the end of last May: “… the radome mounted on top of the fuselage is clearly visible, along with a wide array of antennas and modifications similar to those seen on the KJ-2000. More specifically, there are air intakes located on the upper section of the fuselage, which are likely used to cool the various electronic systems carried by the KJ-3000.”
Although it is still uncertain whether the KJ-3000 will make an official appearance during the upcoming Victory Day air parade in early September, the fact that test flights are still being conducted while the aircraft is in its primer paint could indicate that such a debut is unlikely.
As a comparison, the KJ-600—China’s future carrier-based AEW&C aircraft, intended for operation aboard the Type 003 carrier Fujian—has already conducted multiple solo and formation flights, appearing in what seems to be its final paint scheme, suggesting these are either prototype or pre-series aircraft.
Finally, regardless of whether the KJ-3000 is formally unveiled during the upcoming Victory Day events, the latest developments in the production of new AEW&C platforms reflect the PLA’s commitment to acquiring such technologies in line with the ongoing expansion of the armed forces’ defensive capabilities.
You may also like: China’s Navy Expected to Present the New KJ-600 AEW&C Aircraft for the Fujian Carrier During Victory Day Celebrations
