A two-seat Chinese strike aircraft developed for long-range maritime strike and conventional interdiction, initially for naval aviation.
Development
Xi’an JH-7 Flying Leopard was developed by Xi’an Aircraft Industrial Corporation in People’s Republic of China as a strike fighter. The family first flew in 1988. Its recorded airframe configuration is fixed wing, with the family classified in the archive as core combat-aircraft scope.
Operational History
Operationally, Xi’an JH-7 Flying Leopard is represented primarily in the strike fighter role. The sourced variant records include service with People’s Liberation Army Naval Air Force. The current structured record does not attach a specific conflict authority to this family; operational context remains limited to sourced service and role data. Role tags attached to the family include anti ship and battlefield interdiction.
Variants and Lineage
Major variants represented in the structured record include JH-7 and JH-7A.
Variants
| Designation | Type | Role | Recorded operators |
|---|---|---|---|
| JH-7 | Production | Strike Fighter | People’s Liberation Army Naval Air Force |
| JH-7A | Upgrade | Strike Fighter | People’s Liberation Army Naval Air Force |
Representative specifications
Configuration-specific profiles are shown separately so values from different variants are not blended into one false “standard” aircraft.
JH-7 — C017 baseline technical profile
- Crew
- 2
Powerplant: 2 × Rolls-Royce Spey / Xian WS-9 turbofans
Armament: Internal cannon with anti-ship missiles, guided weapons, rockets, and conventional strike stores.
Sources and further reading
Structured references supporting this aircraft family, variants, specifications, and narrative sections.
- Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1989-90 — Jane’s Information Group · Tier 3
- Jane's All the World's Aircraft 2004-05 — Jane's Information Group · Tier 3