Shenyang J - 31 The Shenyang J - 31 , rumored to be nicknamed " Gyrfalcon " ( 鹘鹰 ) , or " Falcon Hawk " by some military enthusiasts , is a twin - engine , mid - size fifth - generation jet fighter currently under development by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation . The fighter has also been referred to as F - 60 or J - 21 Snowy Owl ( 雪鸮 ) in media reports . Development . A photo of a model labeled F - 60 was posted on the Internet in September 2011 . In June 2012 , photos and camera video clips started to emerge on internet about a heavily overwrap ped possible F - 60 prototype being road - transferred on a highway , earning the nickname " the zongzi plane " ( 粽子机 ) among Chinese netizen s , though some suspect it of mere being a L - 15 trainer aircraft . Pictures of a possibly fully assembled aircraft parking on an airfield emerged on September 15 – 16 , 2012 . The F - 60 is reported to be the export version , where the J - 31 would be the domestic Chinese version of the same fighter . Strategic implications . The appearance of the J - 31 raised concern about a potential arms race in Asia , as some of China ' s neighbors might again start to consider purchasing the F - 35 . A 1 / 4 scale model of the J - 31 was shown at the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition 2012 , hinting at a desire to offer the aircraft for export , as an alternative for those countries that cannot purchase the F - 35 . AVIC confirmed at the exhibition that the aircraft was intended for export . In 2013 Admiral Zhang Zhaozhong confirmed that the J - 31 was only for export to countries unable to buy the F - 35 and would not be used by the PLAN . Stephen Biddle of the Council for Foreign Relations has speculated that the aircraft design was intended for domestic use , but found to be under performing and hence relegated to the export market . Flight testing . The prototype conducted a high - speed taxiing and briefly became airborne . On 31 October 2012 , prototype No . 31001 conducted the model ' s maiden flight . It was accompanied by two J - 11 fighters in a ten - minute test flight with its landing gear lowered . With the maiden test flight of the prototype No . 31001 on October 31 , 2012 , China became the second nation after the 1991 Advanced Tactical Fighter fly off , to have two stealth fighter designs in field - testing at the same time . The aircraft has continued a limited test program , with footage emerging of further flights which took place in February 2013 . Design . The J - 31 is a mid - weight , twin rudder and twin - engine jet with the typical configuration that is commonly shared by other 5th generation fighters such as Sukhoi T - 50 . J - 31 incorporates certain stealth characters such as forward swept intake cowls with diverterless supersonic inlet ( DSI ) bumps and a two - piece canopy . The J - 31 appears to be a smaller and more agile aircraft than the Chengdu J - 20 that resembles a twin engine F - 35C . This may be because it might be used as a fifth generation carrier based fighter . Another feature that the J - 31 shares with the F - 35C ( and most other carrier based fighter jets ) is the twin forward wheels . Bill Sweetman has cited several improvements to the F - 35C design files the Chinese may have acquired in the J - 31 . Like the F - 35 , the J - 31 has two internal weapons bays that can each carry two medium range missiles , along with two heavy hardpoints and one light hardpoint on each wing , but while it seems to have added an additional very light hardpoint to each wing over the capacity of the F - 35 , it seems to lack the capacity of the F - 35 to mount a centerline gunnery or jamming pod . The J - 31 ' s chief designer , Sun Cong , has said that he hoped that the aircraft would follow his J - 15 onto China ' s aircraft carriers . It is unknown if the J - 31 is meant to be a competitor to the J - 20 stealth fighter or a complement to it . It is also unknown if it will be a land - based fighter for the People ' s Liberation Army Air Force , or a carrier - based fighter for the People ' s Liberation Army Naval Air Force on the Liaoning Aircraft Carrier and future Chinese carriers . Vladimir Barkovsky of Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG ( formerly known as the Mikoyan - Gurevich Design Bureau ) has stated that , despite some design flaws , the J - 31 " looks like a good machine . " Although it contains features already in use on the U . S . fifth generation fighter designs , it is " not a copy but a well done indigenous design . " Barkovsky has confirmed that the engines on the prototype aircraft are RD - 93 s . However , China already has an engine similar to the RD - 93 , the Guizhou WS - 13 currently installed on the JF - 17 which has the same thrust and size of the Russian RD - 93 . China is working on an improved variant named WS - 13G with 100KN of thrust for use on the J - 31 . Lin Zuoming , chairman of China ' s AVIC , has said that he hopes to put domestic engines on the fighter . As the Chinese build up confidence in newer , more reliable and powerful domestic engines , they may be able to power the J - 31 sooner than the larger J - 20 and in greater numbers . USAF Lieutenant General Charles Davis has said that while the Chinese fifth generation fighter may have used stolen information from the F - 35 program , they were unlikely to measure up to the American aircraft . Unlike the F - 35 ' s " baked in " fiber - mat stealth , the J - 31 uses stealth coatings . Specifications ( estimated ) . Because the aircraft is in development , these specifications — based on available imagery — are approximate and preliminary .