New images show China's J-XDS prototype with revised nose and nozzles

New unofficial images of China's J-XDS, also called the J-50, show a prototype flying at low altitude with a nose radome in a different colour, according to an account that tracks Chinese military developments. The aircraft was likely photographed near the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation facility.

A painted radome of this kind is often taken as a sign that a radar has been fitted. Several countries have shown that step in prototype programmes as flight testing advances. The same observer noted that practices differ between manufacturers and nations, so the change does not settle the question on its own.

The airframe also appears to have larger exhaust nozzles than earlier examples. The account suggested this could mean it is a new prototype or a revised development configuration.

Separately, a poster at an exhibition appears to show a laser system, translated from Mandarin as Acquisition Tracking Pointing, associated with China's larger J-36 aircraft, a three-engine design. Two J-36 prototypes have been reported previously, and observers have described an airframe seen in December 2025 as possibly a third. One researcher wrote in a social media post that as many as two more J-36 airframes may exist, which would put the total at five.