Shaanxi KJ-2000

Overview

The Shaanxi KJ-2000 (Chinese: 空警-2000; pinyin: Kōngjǐng Liǎngqiān; lit. 'Airwarning-2000', NATO reporting name: Mainring) is a Chinese second-generation airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by the Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation, and is the first AEW&C system in service to the People's Liberation Army Air Force. It is built upon a modified Russian Ilyushin Il-76 airframe using domestically designed avionics and a fixed radome featuring three active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars each covering a 120-degree sector, unlike the rotating radome on the comparable E-3 Sentry serving the United States Air Force.