According to an image revealed by China's state-run TV station, the country is developing a fourth generation fighter. Nicknamed Snowy Owl by Chinese military enthusiasts, the appearance of the jet fighter is similar to the F-35 made by the United States defense contractor Lockheed Martin.
The J-20 stealth fighter is not the last Chinese technological development which will astonish the United States, one Chinese netizen said in an online message; Snowy Owl is just another example.
China is secretly developing a triplane-canard-configurated fighter that has a totally different architecture to that of the J-20, CCTV was quoted by Hong Kong-based Sing Tao Daily as reporting. Some Chinese online military experts believe that the fighter is very likly to be the Snowy Owl, currently being developed by the AVIC Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SIC).
Online information regarding the SIC says that it is manufacturing a new type of aircraft whose design uses triplane canard configuration, Chinese netizens reported.
The aircraft has a fixed vertical wing, and the engine has rhomboidal nozzles, according to the CCTV report, adding that the design renders the aircraft lighter than most of the fourth generation fighters.
