U.S. Air Force Leadership Confirms ‘Tough Choices’ Ahead as China Develops World’s First Sixth Generation Fighter

Speaking at the annual Air & Space Forces Association’s Warfare Symposium,U.S. Air Combat Commander Kenneth Wilsbach has highlighted the significant concerns that have arisen regarding China’s progress towards fielding a sixth generation fighter aircraft. “We have some choices to make as we observe what China has produced, and we can presume we know what that’s for – for air superiority,” he stated. “What are we going to do about it? I don’t believe that nothing is an option,” Wilsbach stressed, indicating a need for the Air Force to move ahead with its own Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) sixth generation fighter program. Work on developing NGAD was paused in 2024, as the Air Force has faced a worsening budgetary crisis due to major overruns in the costs of the F-35 fighter and Sentinel intercontinental range ballistic missile. This combined with the perceived urgent need for a stealth tanker to be able to operate effectively over the Pacific, the E-7 AEW&C to maintain situational awareness against Chinese fifth generation fighters, and the B-21 stealth bomber, has left the service with few funds remaining to finance development of NGAD.

U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff General David W. Allvin on January 17 similarly cited China’s unveiling of two new sixth generation fighters to argue that his service required significantly more attention and investment to face emerging challenges. “Last month, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) released videos of not just one, but two new sixth-generation aircraft,” he stated, adding that it was his “sincere hope that this got America’s attention and serves as a wakeup call, because we need the nation’s assistance advancing the Air Force with the sense of strategic urgency this moment requires.” Leading expert on Chinese next generation fighter programs, and author of the book China’s Stealth Fighter: The J-20 ‘Mighty Dragon’ and the Growing Challenge to Western Air Dominance, Abraham Abrams, subsequently observed that it was highly likely that China would field a sixth generation fighter before the United States, highlighting that the East Asian state’s defence sector had proven capable of developing new generations of combat aircraft far more quickly than was possible in the U.S. The J-20, he noted, took just six years to develop between its first flight and its entry into service, while the American F-22 and F-35 both took 15 years. This put China on track to field a sixth generation fighter in the early 2030s, and the United States much closer to 2040.