A Chinese research paper on an ejection cockpit for highly supersonic flight has attracted attention after a mysterious combined-wing test object appeared in Gaobeidian’s radar range.
Experts have linked a Chinese scientific academic paper on a crew escape module for a “highly supersonic aircraft” to an unidentified dart-type flying plane that appeared at China’s RCS (Radar Cross Section) test site in Gaobeidan, Hebei province, in October 2023. We had reported on another kite-type aircraft with sloping wings at the same test site in August 2023. 2024.
Chinese military aviation researcher Andreas Rupprecht had originally shared an excerpt from a 2020 research paper on an “ejectable escape crew module for a highly supersonic aircraft.” It showed models, graphs, velocities and angles of a complete module, containing an entire crew, ejected from the top of the aircraft, supported by complex physics equations and identifying parameters such as trajectory and center of gravity.
Rupprecht then reshared and cited a remark he received from a ‘Tomboy/SDF’ that pointed out how the plane in the document appeared to be “the same plane/model, supposedly taken at an RCS test facility a few months ago.” Additionally, the post said that “it appears to be again the well-known RCS test facility in Gaobeidian, where this ‘strange’ thing was first seen in October 2023.”
Via Tomboy/SDF responding to my previous post:
“Appears to be the same aircraft/model, supposedly taken at an RCS test facility a few months ago.” It appears to be again the well-known RCS test facility in Gaobeidian, where this “strange” thing was first seen in October 2023. https://t.co/WZmvcXcqDB pic.twitter.com/fkkwc0KnWo
– @Rupprecht_A (@RupprechtDeino) October 27, 2025
Important to analyze Chinese aerospace research
While the two aircraft appear to share some similarities, it would be premature to definitively establish a connection between the two. However, the focus of this article is the scientific article, rather than the plane itself.
Dozens of such articles in Chinese publications, both in the general field of STEM and in dual-use technologies, have appeared in the mainstream East Asian press for years. Many of them, reporting groundbreaking discoveries, could remain academic/theoretical achievements in peer-reviewed journals, with no practical future.
However, it should be noted that “on paper” research also parallels major advances across the full range of civil and defense technologies. As for the planes, it adds to the repertoire that has appeared so far, whether in flight, satellite images and official displays at exhibitions and parades.
The last known was the Chinese Academy flying wing aircraft exhibited at the Changchun Air Show. The J-36, J-XDS/J-50, New Generation Aircraft, GJ-11 Sharp Sword and CH-7 are some of the flying examples.
Three more images showing the J-36 during its second flight. pic.twitter.com/B5nAmiyPlg
– @Rupprecht_A (@RupprechtDeino) March 17, 2025
Even with some of those flight examples, we are far from knowing if they have any military utility or if they are just experimental activities. China’s large and growing Gen. 5 and 4.5 fleet, increasingly capable navy, and the PLA’s massive Rocket Force can still fight a conventional war with its current inventory, even if these newer aircraft are not in use.
The plane in the newspaper and the satellite image.
The plane in the satellite image has a composite delta wing, like the Saab J35 Draken. The trailing edges, which extend beyond the two exhaust nozzles, give it an overall “flying dart” shape, similar to an early version of the NGAD.
A cursory look shows the presence of two serrated flat escapements, but this cannot be said with certainty. It also cannot be determined if the aircraft has a cockpit.
However, we can clearly see two tilted vertical stabilizers and that the aircraft has a combined wing body design. It should be noted that, as mentioned above, the facility at Gaobeidian is an RCS test facility, and the aircraft could simply be a representative test object to evaluate its radar visibility and stealth materials.
Just translated: pic.twitter.com/E3Vp4nmbOv
– @Rupprecht_A (@RupprechtDeino) October 27, 2025
Meanwhile, the plane in the newspaper has a classic covered upper and rear cockpit, again suggesting a large strategic bomber, and the illustration in it implies that the entire cockpit section was being considered to be “ejectable.” This would not be new, since the American-made F-111 Aardvark had an exhaust module that ejected the entire cabin.
Ejecting at high altitude and at high supersonic speeds could possibly harm the crew and thus the idea of a safe module protecting them from the elements. With the exception of Rupprecht’s post, there is no similarity between the plane in the article and the satellite image.
Rupprecht also published an excerpt of the article translated into English, where the author describes his version of a development path for various hypersonic weapons. This includes first the development of “hypersonic cruise missiles” for “rapid response and strong penetration capabilities.” China has already tested and deployed systems such as the DF-17 rocket launching the DF-ZF HGV (hypersonic glide vehicle) and the YJ-19 hypersonic anti-ship missile.
Next is the “hypersonic aircraft” for “rapid long-range deployment” and high-altitude air combat, with an expected speed of Mach 8-10. This would imply a “huge” scale of “technical difficulty” to develop.
The last stage is to develop “space planes” primarily for the “advancement of humanity” into the future, followed by their “dual-use” nature to be used for “space control” as that domain would become increasingly contested in the future.
Successful development of DF-17 ballistic missile marked China’s move to leading position in hypersonic weapons: President Xi pic.twitter.com/CPceda6cHy
– Global Times (@globaltimesnews) May 31, 2021
Other articles on hypersonic and high-speed flights.
He SCMP (South China Morning Post) reported in January 2023 that a team, led by Yin Zhongjie of the Shanghai Institute of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, developed new algorithms for tracking hypersonic missiles with complex mathematics, as the existing code was suitable for mid-course interception of rocket-powered missiles. The new equations allow a computer to accurately predict the trajectory of an air-breathing hypersonic aircraft.
Interestingly, the new algorithm was based on a solution developed by then-MIT student David Benson in his doctoral thesis. SCMP He adds that Benson, according to his LinkedIn profile, is now one of the top scientists at the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory. Hypersonic technology is one of the institute’s main research areas.
Before that, in January 2022, SCMP reported that China’s Space Physics Science and Technology Laboratory claimed to have found a way to break the “communications blackout” that occurs with hypersonic missiles. The extremely high temperatures of artificial objects, due to friction between their surfaces and the atmosphere during reentry, generate ‘plasma shields’ of ionized gas on the surface, blocking signals.
To allow radar waves to reach the object, the School of Precision Instruments and Optoelectronic Engineering at Tianjin University invented a laser system that can emit a continuous beam of electromagnetic waves in the terahertz spectrum, necessary for the upcoming 6G communication technology. In other words, these articles examine the extreme physics and engineering associated with hypersonic and highly supersonic flight.
