niubi
Registered Member
China operates 17-20x more AWACS than India.
Back in like 2022-2023, yeah.
China currently operates approximately:
5 units of KJ-2000
10 units of KJ-200
>80-90 units of KJ-500 (in mass production)
~10 units of KJ-600 (hitting mass production)
Introducing KJ-3000 into service as we speak and will be mass produced like Y-20.
KJ-3000 let's just say is the GaN on SiC level of radar technology for AWACS/AEW&C, if not further since GaN on SiC has been used by China on J-20 for over 3 years already.
GaA -> GaN -> GaN on SiC -> graphene and other materials doped or base which Chinese state media has hinted is the current generation being tested. This lines up since China has been using GaN for warships, J-16, J-20 and J-10C for close to 10 years now and even GaN on missile seekers. GaN on SiC is the one on the latest block J-20A, J-20S and J-16.
We are not even counting HALE unmanned AWACS/AEW&C like WZ-9 and Y-9 based electronic warfare aircraft or signal intelligence aircraft.
This is a current (which is old estimates from 2022 era, except of course for KJ-600 and KJ-3000 which are newer AWACS) total of a minimum of 100-120 AWACS/AEWC.
China builds these at a rate that is incomparable to India since India doesn't produce their own. India currently operates a total of 6 AWACS/AEW&C. All of them in the KJ-200 class and approximately equal to the KJ-200 and KJ-500 level of modernity and output (I'm honestly being conservative and generous putting the Phalcon and Netra in KJ-500 class of tech, modernity and power output).
Even only comparing numbers and ignoring output, modernity and baseline tech, this is already more than 20x India's and PLAAF and PLANAF receive dozens of new AWACS/AEW&C every year with the introduction of KJ-600 and KJ-3000. We ain't even counting AWACS/AEW&C role given to UAVs and special missile aircraft (EW, SIGINT, ASW which all have overlapping capabilities to AWACS/AEW&C).
Y-20 has expanded production facilities for KJ-3000.
If people think China made a lot very quickly, lol they ain't seen shit yet.
China's production and supply chain investment fruits haven't even hit in full at all. This is all operating with western based reporting of roughly 3% GDP spending. China itself claims low 2%s and west scales it up for dramatic effect. This is all before basically doubling all production facilities and upgrading automation and improving the entire supply chain daily.
In reality, China has in recent years upped defence spending by a little and the new production lines are all yet to go full throttle. Military production outputs are going to make Chinese EV industry look like a joke in comparison whether it is modernity, tech level, iteration speed, improvement speed and production. Military is the field that is the focus (without saying it is).

