China Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC)
J-16
Two-seat, twin-engine strike fighter derived from the Su-30MKK, built by Shenyang Aircraft with domestic AESA radar and avionics for heavy multirole strike missions. Forms a major part of the PLA Air Force's fourth-generation strike fleet, alongside an electronic-warfare J-16D variant.
In service since 2015 · 1 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02
2,100
km/h
3,900
km range
17,000
m ceiling
12,000
kg payload
0.99
T/W
Pricing: No reliable public unit-cost figure
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
Chinese state channel
State export agencies (NORINCO/CATIC); limited availability to Western-aligned states.
Channel: State export agency
Fielded & proven
Limited · 1 operator
In service since 2015. Status: active · ~300 built.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
No public unit price to model from.
Interoperability
No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.
Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
- Max speed
Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance.
- 2,100 km/h Stronger than 42% of fighters
- Max speed (Mach)
Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.
- 2 Mach Stronger than 57% of fighters
- Range
Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.
- 3,900 km Stronger than 85% of fighters
- Combat radius
Distance an aircraft can fly, complete its mission and return without refueling. Roughly a third of ferry range.
- 1,500 km Stronger than 85% of fighters
- Service ceiling
Maximum operating altitude. Higher gives energy advantage and sensor horizon.
- 17,000 m Stronger than 59% of fighters
- Thrust-to-weight
Engine thrust divided by loaded weight. Above 1.0 the aircraft can accelerate going straight up.
- 0.99 Stronger than 53% of fighters
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
- Main armament
Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.
- 30 mm GSh-30-1 cannon
- Hardpoints
External stations for weapons and pods. More means bigger and more flexible loadouts.
- 12 Stronger than 86% of fighters
- Weapons payload
Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie.
- 12,000 kg Top 3% of fighters
Protection
Armor, countermeasures and survivability.
- Countermeasures
Self-protection: chaff, flares, DIRCM, towed decoys, smoke dischargers, jammers.
- internal EW self-protection suite, chaff, flares
Physical
Dimensions, weight and crew.
- Length
Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.
- 21.9 m
- Wingspan
Wingtip-to-wingtip span.
- 14.7 m
- Height
Overall height. Lower profile is harder to spot and hit for ground vehicles.
- 6.36 m
- Empty weight
Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew.
- 17,700 kg
- Combat weight
Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor.
- 35,000 kg
- Crew
Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity.
- 2
Propulsion
Engine, power and fuel.
- Engine
Powerplant model and type.
- 2x Shenyang WS-10B afterburning turbofans
- Engines
Number of engines. Twin-engine gives redundancy at higher cost.
- 2
- Thrust
Total engine thrust (with afterburner where applicable).
- 142 kN Stronger than 85% of fighters
- Fuel capacity
Internal fuel volume.
- 9,400 L
- Propulsion type
Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…
- Turbofan
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
- Radar
Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.
- domestic AESA radar
- Sensors
IRST, EO/IR turrets, laser designators, sniper pods, thermal sights.
- infrared search and track
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
- Units built
Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.
- 300 Stronger than 62% of fighters
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 1 Stronger than 23% of fighters
Specifications compiled from public Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.
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What is the top speed of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 has a maximum speed of 2,100 km/h.
What is the range of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 has a maximum range of 3,900 km.
What is the weapons payload of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 can carry up to 12,000 kg of weapons payload.
How much does the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 weigh? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 has a combat weight of 35,000 kg.
How many crew does the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 require? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 requires a crew of 2.
What is the main armament of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16's primary weapon is the 30 mm GSh-30-1 cannon.
What engine does the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 use? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 is powered by the 2x Shenyang WS-10B afterburning turbofans.
What is the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 used for? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 is a fighter aircraft typically used for multirole combat, deep strike, air superiority.
How many countries operate the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16? +
The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 is operated by 1 countries.
How much does the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16 cost? +
Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-16: No reliable public unit-cost figure. Defense program costs are rarely fully public and vary by contract and configuration.
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