Executive Summary

In late December 2024, video and photos circulated on social media displaying China’s previously unseen ‘sixth-generation’ stealth aircraft as it conducted a daytime test flight. The aircraft, identified as the J-36, drew immediate attention due to its unusual design and large size. This event occurred just days after the United States Department of Defence released its annual report to Congress, which detailed the People’s Liberation Army’s rapid modernisation in space and cyberspace, in the air, on the ground, and on and beneath the waves.