A photograph circulated online this week showing a People's Liberation Army Navy J-15T carrier fighter carrying a YJ-15 supersonic anti-ship missile confirms a long-suspected operational pairing and marks a notable upgrade to China's carrier air arm. The image provides the first clear public evidence that the YJ-15, unveiled in the 2025 parade, is being deployed on carrier-capable tactical fighters rather than only larger strike platforms.
The J-15T differs from earlier J-11-derived fighters by having reinforced, heavy-duty wing-root pylons and updated missile control circuits designed to carry stores weighing over a tonne. That structural approach follows the developmental lineage of the Su-30MKK/Su-35 family, where heavy root pylons have been used for large anti-radiation and heavy air-to-surface weapons, and explains why the J-15T can handle the YJ-15 where earlier J-15 variants primarily carried YJ-83 family missiles.
Operationally the aircraft offers multiple pylon options: wing-root, mid-wing, under-intake and centerline stations can in principle support heavy loads, allowing a theoretical maximum of several large missiles in extreme configurations. In practice, planners will trade payload for maneuverability, range and deck-safety: carrying many heavy supersonic missiles degrades agility, reduces fuel endurance and complicates arrested landings, especially if a weapon with a ramjet or scramjet is hung under an intake or belly station.
Tactically the YJ-15 represents a clear step up from the subsonic YJ-83 family and older anti-radiation options. Its higher speed, larger warhead and improved penetration make it better suited to challenging, layered fleet defenses and, paired with carrier aircraft, gives the PLA Navy a more credible ability to threaten large surface combatants and carrier strike groups at tactical ranges. The Chinese force concept still layers tactical missile aircraft under a campaign-level strike architecture built around H-6 strategic bombers equipped with longer-range supersonic and hypersonic weapons.
Viewed comparatively, Beijing's new J-15T/YJ-15 combination narrows certain capability gaps between Chinese carrier aviation and other navies. Several regional competitors field carrier fighters optimized for subsonic or smaller anti-ship missiles, while U.S. carrier air wings rely on a mix of standoff weapons (LRASM, JSM family) and legacy Harpoon variants. That said, Western and allied systems emphasize networked sensors, layered air defenses and countermeasures that shape how and where air-launched anti-ship missiles can be effective.
Limitations remain. Supersonic missiles like the YJ-15 are harder to detect and intercept than subsonic sea-skimming weapons, but they are not immune to modern integrated air and missile defenses, close-in weapon systems and electronic attack. Beijing appears to view the YJ-15 as an intermediate step: the PLA has already exhibited larger and hypersonic designs that, if miniaturized and adapted for air launch, would present an even more daunting challenge to naval defenses.
Strategically, the public pairing of the J-15T and YJ-15 reshapes threat calculations in the western Pacific and beyond. It improves the PLA Navy's ability to prosecute anti-access/area-denial missions from carrier decks, complicates carrier strike group operations inside contested ranges and will likely accelerate allied investments in layered detection, interception and expeditionary logistics to preserve maritime access. For regional planners, the image is a reminder that incremental platform-and-weapons integration can shift tactical balances even before new-generation hypersonic systems arrive.