Aviation Museum in Košice

Photogallery

Nanchang Q-5 Fantan

Nanchang Q-5 Fantan (30521) photo: Otger van der Kooij

Nanchang Q-5 (Qiang-5, Qiangjiji-5 - attack plane 5) - Fantan in NATO code. For exporting purposes marked as A-5.

Shenyang Aircraft Factory started to work on Q-5 in 1958. Aircraft was derivative of fighter J-6, it was Chinese copy of Russian MiG-19. Development Later allocated to Nanchang Aircraft Factory (now Hongdu Aircraft Industry Group). First flight of prototype 4 June 1965. Serial production started at the end of 1969.

Q-5 is powered by two Shenyang WP-6 (Wopen-6) engines, derived from Russian engines Tumanskij R-9BF. Main armament consist of two 23 mm cannon Norinco 23-2K , in the wing roots. Each cannon has 100 rounds. Maximum bomb carrying capacity is 2,000 kg.

From fuselage number 30521 is possible to identify unit which used this aircraft. It was 31st regiment 11th Air Division PLAAF (Siping, Jilin Province).

Aircraft if gift from Chinese President to Slovak Technical Museum in Košice and will be part of so-called Presidential Aircraft Gallery. Q-5 was transported to Slovakia by ship from China to Amsterdam and later by car to Košice where it was completed by Chinese experts.

Versions:

• Q-5I - it has extra fuel tank in fuselage instead of weapon bay (it allow to increase aircraft range), two additional under-fuselage hardpoints, modified landing gear and improved engines.
• Q-5IA - modified variant of the Q-5I. It has two extra underwing hardpoints and new gun/bomb sighting system.
• Q-5II - equipped with a radar warning receiver (RWR).
• Q-5III - (A-5C) was developed specially for Pakistanian Air Force and Martin-Baker ejection seat, updated avionics (RWR, IFF), and hardpoints modified for most Western weapons such as the AIM-9 "Sidewinder" AAM.
• Q-5M - upgraded variant co-developed with Aeritalia (Alenia). It is equipped with Italian electronics and more powerful engine, first flight in 1988.
• Q-5K - this version was following to China-France agreement from 1987 fitted with modern avionics from french company Thomson-CSF.
• Q-5B - version built for PLA Naval Air Corps equipped with Doppler radar, autopilot system and underfuselage hardpoints for carrying two Yu-2 torpedoes.
• Q-5A - nuclear strike variant. Just few Q-5 were modified to carry nuclear bomb. Bomb bay was modified to install nuclear bomb partly overhanged.

Photo kindly made available by Otger van der Kooij from Netherlands.