Zhuhai airshow: Stealth fighters and a massive mothership drone: the high-tech weapons China has unveiled

Hong Kong CNN — China showed off its rapidly advancing military technology by unveiling a string of cutting-edge hardware at the country’s largest airshow last week. J35-A stealth fighter More than a decade in the making, China’s much-anticipated new stealth fighter jet, the J-35A, is widely seen as part of Beijing’s bid to match the United States’ stealth fighter capabilities. Its maximum takeoff weight is likely to be approaching 30 tons, Song Xinzhi, a Chinese military expert and former researcher in the PLA Air Force, told state broadcaster CCTV, hailing it a “breakthrough” for China’s new generation of medium-sized stealth fighters. Costfoto/NurPhoto/Getty Images HQ-19 anti-ballistic missile system Experts have been quick to compare the HQ-19, China’s new-generation surface-to-air missile system, to the US’ Terminal High Altitude Air Defense system. “It takes the concept of an aircraft carrier from the sea to the air, enabling the deployment of numerous drones onto the battlefield by launching them in the air,” Chinese military expert Du Wenlong claimed, hailing it a “significant innovation.” A view of the "Orca," China's latest stealth unmanned surface combat vessel, at the airshow in Zhuhai.