China unveils new generation of fighter plane

BEIJING, Apr 28 (Reuters) China successfully flew a new generation of its home-built Xiaolong fighter plane today, marking what state media called a step forward in China's military modernisation.

Four Xiaolong -- or ''Fierce Dragon'' -- FC-4 fighters took off for trial flights in Chengdu, capital of the southwestern province of Sichuan, where China Aviation Industry Corporation has developed the plane using local technology, the official China News Agency reported.

The successful flights set the stage for large-scale production of the aircraft, the news agency said, calling the aircraft a ''major achievement for China's development of advanced aeronautic weaponry and equipment''.

The Xiaolong is a single-seat, single-engine fighter plane with a maximum flying range of 3,500 km (2,190 miles), the People's Daily previously reported.

In March, China unveiled a 14.7 percent jump in 2006 defence spending compared to the previous year, or a total of 283.8 billion yuan (.3 billion).

The rise was the latest of a succession of double-digit increases in military spending. And U.S. defence officials and many analysts have said Beijing in fact spends much more on new military equipment than the official budget shows.

Industry reports have said the aircraft is unlikely to be used by China's own air force. But Pakistan plans to buy eight of the planes late this year or early next, according to the China News Agency.

This week Russian Defence Minister Sergei Invanov said China may participate in Russia's development on a new-generation fighter, but he said it was a ''long-term'' prospect that had to surmount economic and legal obstacles.

REUTERS CH HS1502