【Foreign Media: China Surpasses Russia to Become the World's Second-Largest Air Power】
According to a report by Defense Security Asia, a leading Asian defense and security website, published on June 17, 2026: China has risen to become the world’s second-largest air power, marking one of the most decisive shifts in global military balance since the end of the Cold War. Today, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) possesses a modern combat aircraft fleet second only to that of the United States. Multiple open-source military aviation assessment organizations estimate that China currently operates approximately 110 to 130 fighter units, with between 2,000 and 2,500 active combat aircraft—surpassing Russia in sheer aircraft numbers. Meanwhile, China’s defense industry is advancing the full-scale modernization of its fighter fleet at an industrial pace unmatched anywhere outside the United States.
This military transformation stems from over a decade of top-tier national defense strategy: deepening domestic aviation manufacturing, developing integrated sensor warfare capabilities, pioneering stealth fighter development, securing electronic warfare dominance, and reorganizing aerial combat forces on a large scale to prepare for high-intensity great-power competition scenarios involving India.
Statistics from multiple defense aviation databases show that the PLAAF’s total aircraft inventory amounts to around 3,733 aircraft, with over 2,184 capable of combat operations. Nearly 2,000 fighters are stationed across multiple strategic directions, deployed to maintain readiness in key regions including the Taiwan Strait, South China Sea, Japanese archipelago, and the Western Pacific. In contrast, Russia’s Aerospace Forces suffer from prolonged combat losses, constrained industrial output, international sanctions, and intense operational consumption driven by ongoing conflicts such as the war in Ukraine and sustained confrontation with NATO—resulting in only about 1,300 to 1,500 active combat aircraft today.
The reversal in aircraft numbers is far more than just a paper ranking change. Total combat aircraft strength directly determines daily sortie rates, resilience to attrition, tolerance for distributed operations, and the ability to sustain prolonged multi-front conventional air campaigns. China’s main combat aircraft are predominantly domestically produced fourth-generation-plus and fifth-generation fighters, all fully integrated into network-centric warfare systems. These platforms can conduct beyond-visual-range long-range air combat, deliver high-precision electronic suppression, and are equipped with multi-source sensor fusion systems—capabilities once almost exclusively dominated by Western air forces.
The PLAAF’s modernization process also validates China’s successful translation of national industrial policy into defense aerospace production capacity: domestic annual aircraft production now significantly exceeds Russia’s current output level, and the technological gap between China and the U.S. Air Force continues to narrow.
From a strategic perspective, this expansion of aerial power strengthens China’s ability to conduct anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) operations within the First Island Chain, while extending its long-range air mobility reach into the Philippine Sea, the Western Pacific, and maritime routes surrounding the Taiwan Strait.
—— Mass Production of J-20 and J-35 Stealth Fighters Reshapes the Regional Air Power Landscape
The large-scale deployment of fifth-generation fighters marks the most visible symbol of China’s aerospace industrial transformation. Currently, the number of active stealth fighters in the PLAAF far exceeds the total number of all Russian-produced and experimental Su-57 fighters combined. Open-source intelligence estimates indicate that China’s operational J-20 stealth fighter fleet ranges from 200 to 300 aircraft. With factory expansion and significant improvements in supply chain efficiency, some assessments suggest that annual J-20 production could soon surpass 100 aircraft. By comparison, Russia’s Su-57 program has long been hampered by insufficient production capacity, engine supply shortages, international sanctions, and restricted industrial scaling—leaving only about 25 to 30 operational Su-57s in service within the Russian Aerospace Forces.
The newly fielded J-35 stealth fighter further alters the regional military balance. Both land-based and carrier-based variants have entered service, potentially enabling China to build the world’s second-largest fifth-generation fighter fleet after the United States. The carrier-based version of the J-35 completes China’s aircraft carrier aviation combat system, providing comprehensive stealth air defense, long-range maritime strike capability, and supporting distributed reconnaissance and surveillance for carrier strike groups.
China’s advancement in stealth fighter development also places growing defense pressure on regional countries such as Japan, India, Australia, South Korea, and Taiwan: to counter large-scale stealth fighter raids, these nations must invest heavily in acquiring airborne early warning aircraft, building integrated air defense networks, and developing or procuring next-generation fighters.
—— Mass Production of J-16 and J-10C Builds Quantitative Advantage
The core of China’s quantitative advantage in aerial power lies in the mass production of two advanced fourth-generation-plus fighters: the J-16 multirole combat bomber and the J-10C multirole fighter. Both aircraft are equipped with active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars and integrated electronic warfare systems. Current data shows that the PLAAF operates around 450 J-16s, and the total number of various J-10 variants exceeds 550—forming a vast, modern aerial combat force capable of sustaining prolonged, high-intensity operations across multiple theaters.
The J-16 boasts high payload capacity, multi-sensor fusion, and long-range strike capabilities. Its dedicated electronic warfare variant, the J-16D, can suppress and disable enemy radar, communications, and overall air defense systems—offering combat flexibility comparable to Western advanced multirole fighters, with significant strategic value. Similarly, the J-10C is a versatile frontline fighter featuring AESA radar, full suite of advanced avionics, digital cockpit, and compatibility with long-range air-to-air missiles—specifically designed for networked joint operations.
Mass production itself constitutes a strategic advantage: a large fleet expands pilot training pipelines, ensures sustained sortie efficiency, reduces maintenance wear-and-tear, and preserves ample operational reserves during protracted high-tech conflicts. A fully self-reliant upstream and downstream aviation supply chain shields China’s defense industry from international sanctions, export controls, and overseas component supply disruptions—issues that continue to constrain Russian aviation production. Stable aircraft production also enables the PLA Air Force to accelerate the retirement of aging aircraft, continuously upgrade combat units with new equipment, and avoid the widespread decline in operational readiness commonly seen in older fleets.
Disclaimer: All equipment data referenced above originates from reports by Defense Security Asia.
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Original source: toutiao.com/article/1868234481103897/
Disclaimer: This article reflects the personal views of the author.