China Now Has The World's 3rd-Largest Aviation Force

A Chinese J-20 stealth fighter at an air show in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, November 1, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer  

Business Insider: China now has the world's 3rd-largest aviation force. Here are the combat jets it's using to catch up with the West. 

* China's air force and navy now field roughly 2,800 aircraft, about 2,250 of them combat aircraft. 

* That gives China the largest aviation force in the region and the third largest in the world. 

* The build up of that force means China is "rapidly catching up to Western air forces," the Pentagon says. 

According to the US Department of Defense annual report on China's military, released in November, the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) and People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) now "constitute the largest aviation force in the region and the third largest in the world." 

The Pentagon estimates that China has roughly 2,800 aircraft in those two forces, not including drones and trainer aircraft. 

About 2,250 of them are dedicated combat aircraft, including 1,800 fighters, about 800 of which are considered fourth-generation jets.  

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: Here is a good analysis on China's new stealth fighters .... Reviewing China’s New Stealth Fighters (The Diplomat).