China Reveals “Unpainted” J-35 Stealth Fighter Indicating Start of Batch Production

China’s state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) has released images of an unpainted J-35 carrier-based stealth fighter conducting a flight this week, hinting at the start of the early phase of batch production for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s next-generation combat aircraft.

AVIC said in posts on the Chinese social media platform Weibo on Wednesday that a J-35 completed its first flight of the year on Tuesday at the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation facility in Liaoning Province, accompanied by photographs and video footage. The material showed the aircraft coated in green primer rather than operational paint.

The J-35, the naval variant of the J-35A developed for the PLA Air Force, is designed for aircraft carrier operations and has drawn attention since its public debut during China’s V-Day military parade in Beijing on September 3, 2025. The fighter is intended to operate from China’s expanding carrier fleet, including vessels equipped with electromagnetic catapult systems.

The aircraft type was previously confirmed by the PLA Navy as having completed initial catapult-assisted takeoff and arrested landing training aboard the aircraft carrier Fujian on September 22, 2025. The Fujian, China’s first carrier fitted with electromagnetic launch technology, formally entered service on November 5.

The appearance of an unpainted J-35 in an official release is widely viewed as significant. Wang Ya’nan, chief editor of the Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Global Times that the green primer indicates the aircraft has not yet received its tactical coatings. “This means the aircraft is newly manufactured,” Wang said, adding that the flight was likely a factory or pre-delivery test conducted before handover to the PLA Navy, after which the aircraft would be fully painted for operational use.

This is not the first time such imagery has emerged. In October 2025, China Central Television broadcast footage showing unpainted J-35 and J-35A aircraft under construction inside hangars at the Shenyang facility, offering an early glimpse into production activity.

AVIC also announced that two test aircraft conducted scientific research test flights from Yanliang Airfield in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, on Sunday, marking the start of the company’s 2026 flight test programme, although no details or images of those aircraft were released. The manufacturer said other platforms making first flights this year include the AG600 amphibious aircraft and several helicopter models produced by AVIC subsidiaries in Harbin and Changhe.

In a separate interview published last year, Wang Yongqing, chief expert of the Shenyang Aircraft Design and Research Institute under AVIC, told the Global Times that the J-35 series was developed using an “air-sea twin configuration” and a “one aircraft, multiple variants” concept. He said the aircraft is expected to enter large-scale production in the future and play a central role in integrated combat systems.