Chengdu J-10S
The tandem two-seat conversion trainer derived from the J-10A · First flight 2003 · Certified 2005
The J-10S adds a second cockpit in tandem under a longer, raised canopy, giving the PLAAF a conversion trainer for the new fighter. The first two-seater flew on 26 December 2003, was certified in late 2005 and entered service soon afterwards. It keeps the J-10A's AL-31FN engine and Type 1473 radar.
According to production estimates by analyst Andreas Rupprecht, about 48 two-seaters were built between 2002 and 2014. The IISS counted 77 J-10S in PLAAF service in 2023. A naval version, the J-10SH, flies with PLA Naval Aviation, and the August 1st aerobatic team uses the J-10SY display version alongside its single-seaters.
On 12 November 2016 a two-seat J-10 of the August 1st team crashed after a mid-air collision during a training flight in Hebei. Captain Yu Xu, the first woman qualified to fly the J-10, ejected but was struck by another aircraft and killed.
