Key Points and Summary – In a speculative showdown between the American YF-23 prototype and China’s operational J-20 “Mighty Dragon,” the Cold War-era design holds a surprising edge.
-The YF-23, which narrowly lost the 1991 competition to the F-22, was considered by some to be faster and stealthier.
-In a hypothetical dogfight, the YF-23 would likely win against the J-20 due to its superior stealth, slightly higher speed, and a crucial 20mm internal cannon for close-range engagements—a feature the J-20 lacks, giving the American prototype a decisive advantage.
Which Stealth Fighter Has the Advantage: The YF-23 or China’s J-20?
The YF-23 is a stealth fighter that never progressed beyond the prototype stage, but it is a beautiful airplane with sleek lines and in-air performance that barely fell short of the YF-22 in a fly-off competition in 1991.
The YF-22 became the well-known F-22 Raptor, but the YF-23 could have easily taken its place.
What if it had won the competition?
How would it have fared against the Chinese? Let’s take a notional look at a comparison between the YF-23 and Beijing’s J-20 fifth-generation fighter.
Some thought that the YF-23 was faster and stealthier than the YF-22. The YF-23 could have been a better dogfighter, as it was more agile than the F-22 that eventually emerged. The YF-23 had excellent range and a high ceiling, plus it may have enjoyed better radar evasion than the YF-22.
YF-23 Black Widow II Is Fast with Supercruise
Northrop and McDonnell Douglas only built two YF-23 prototypes, and the YF-23 was nicknamed the “Black Widow II.” The YF-23 could also fly in supercruise mode without the use of afterburners.
The YF-23 had excellent speed at MACH 2+. It is 67 feet long with a wingspan of 44 feet. The range was up to 800 nautical miles. The maximum altitude was 65,000 feet. Two Pratt & Whitney YF119-PW-100s powered the YF-23 with around 35,000 pounds of thrust each.
The YF-23 Had the Ability to Hunt and Kill
For better stealthiness, the YF-23 featured diamond-shaped wings, canted tailfins, and flush-mounted engine intakes. The YF-23 would have been a high-quality hunter-killer with the kind of radar cloaking that could have given many enemy fighters a run for their money.
More on the J-20 Mighty Dragon
Let’s take a deeper dive into the Chinese J-20 fifth-generation fighter. The Mighty Dragon also boasts a MACH 2 speed, powered by its Shenyang WS-10C turbofan engines, which produce 33,000 pounds of thrust. However, the YF-23 would have been slightly faster.
The J-20 has a JLJ-5 AESA radar for better survivability and situational awareness. It is longer than the YF-23, measuring 69 feet, with a slightly smaller wingspan of 43 feet. The combat range is 1,200 miles, and the ceiling is lower than the YF-23 at 52,000 feet.
The J-20 was designed to fly deep into enemy airspace and dominate in a multi-threat environment. The Mighty Dragon is China’s number one fighter, although there are two other stealth fighters in development by Xi Jinping’s air force.
Another advantage of the J-20 is its ability to collect intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance data, as well as conduct electronic warfare duties to spoof and jam enemy radar. This is a deterrence platform for air superiority in the First Island Chain, encompassing the East and South China Seas, as well as the Taiwan Strait.
Was the YF-23 Better Than the F-22?
The YF-23, on the other hand, had ample stealth capability that could have given the J-20 a run for its money in dog-fighting. Perhaps it was superior to the F-22 and could have been produced in greater numbers than the Raptor.
Chinese pilots, although not possessing actual combat experience, are significantly more skilled and experienced than they were prior to the advent of stealth flight in China. The American aviators, on the other hand, could have pushed the YF-23 to its limits with aplomb.
The YF-23 would have been better able to evade radar than the J-20 as the Chinese model is seen as a warplane that may have over-hyped levels of stealth. The J-20 engines are also not combat-proven and could be less capable than the YF-23’s powerplants.
In 4 Words: The Black Widow Wins?
The YF-23 may have performed better in a head-to-head match-up. The American pilots would have been more skillful with the Black Widow II. The YF-23 was equipped with a 20mm cannon for close-range engagements. The J-20 does not have an internal gun.
The YF-23 would have been capable of launching AMRAAMs and Sidewinders. The J-20 has PL-15 long-range air-to-air missiles and PL-10 short-range air-to-air missiles. So the airplanes are evenly matched when it comes to munitions.
The showdown between these two airplanes would have come down to the skill of individual pilots. The two jets are similar in speed, performance, and weapons load. In a short-range dogfight, the YF-23 would have enjoyed the edge with its 20mm cannon. The Black Widow II would have the advantage with better stealth capabilities.
The U.S. Air Force may have picked the wrong fighter. It could have gone with the YF-23, and it would not have hurt the overall performance of the American flying branch against the Chinese air force. I incline towards the YF-23 as the better airplane, as it had superior stealth, combat-proven weapons, and slightly better speed, thanks to more powerful engines. While we will never know if the YF-23 could have flown better against the J-20, the Americans could have still created daylight between the two fighters, and that is a testament to the designers and engineers who crafted the YF-23.
About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood
Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
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