Practically speaking how do you propose a J-20/35 or F-35 is dealt with in an A2A scenario by a rafale?
I get why you’re bringing up limitations of stealth platforms, but in most ordinary scenarios, these 4th vs 5th gen scenarios will almost always see the 4th gen getting mauled. Rafale is nowhere near close to the cutting edge that it might win these matchups.
Forget the marketing hype, I think it’s even unfair that a solid platform like rafale is made to go up against stealthier fighters in theoretical matchups.
Yes, there's no doubt — 5th generation fighter jets are more advanced than 4th gen, and I’m not denying that. But when someone claims they can completely dominate all 4th gen fighters, I have to disagree. It’s not that simple.
Secondly, it often comes down to belief and trust in the platform. If we're talking about U.S. aircraft, I’d still give them an edge — they’ve had over 40 years of operational experience, and their platforms are mature. Even though a stealth fighter was shot down in the 1990s, they’ve continued evolving.
But can we say the same about Chinese aircraft?
You may prefer backing them, but others might hold a different view — and that’s fair. Personally, I believe in practical, proven capabilities over just specs on paper.
I can give you an example with Chinese SSBN submarines — despite being in development for a few decades, it wasn't until they began patrolling in international waters that other nations got the opportunity to assess them. The findings showed that they were quite noisy and still lag behind, even compared to Russian submarines.
So when it comes to an unproven platform, you really can’t draw definitive conclusions. Maybe it’s good, maybe it can be detected — we don’t know for sure yet. But some people are already acting based purely on belief, claiming that Chinese stealth fighters would easily overpower something like the Rafale.
Anyway, I haven’t even touched on aspects like ground support or broader operational capability yet if flying above uncontrolled and enemy airspace