Airshow China, Army 2020 on Schedule

While major international air and defense events in 2020 have been canceled owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, Airshow China in November and Russia’s Army-2020 in August are on schedule.

The organizers of Airshow China on Monday announced that over 400 local and foreign companies, including ones from US, France, Germany, Russia and the UK, have confirmed participation at this year’s edition of the airshow scheduled to take place in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, from November 10-15.

China’s Ba Yi aerobatics team and Russian Knights are expected to take part in flying displays. The event will see real-combat oriented ground equipment shows, the organizers said in their official WeChat account.

The 2018 edition of the biannual show saw about 450,000 visitors.  Domestically-built J-10B fighter jet equipped with a brand new thrust vector control-capable engine made its debut flight performance, and the country's most advanced fighter jet, the J-20, showcased its weapon bays and missiles for the first time at Airshow China 2018.

This has set high expectations for this year's exhibition, with military enthusiasts hoping to see the likes of J-20s equipped with homemade engines and an upgraded version of the FC-31 fighter jet, Chinese state media reported.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Army-2020 International Military-Technical Forum will be held from August 23-29 at Patriot Expo (Moscow), Kubinka Air Base and Alabino military training grounds. Over 1,300 exhibitors have agreed to partake in the event. At Army-2019 Forum, the Russia placed an order for 76 Su-57 stealth fighters for an estimated $2.7 billion.