J-6A

J-6A

J-4

J-7II

J-6A

J-4

J-7II

China

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
10.0	9.3	9.7

Class:

Fighter

Jet fighter

Research:190 000

Purchase:520 000

Description

The J-6A (Chinese: 歼-6甲型歼击机; Type 59 Interceptor 五九式歼击机 before new naming), sharing the NATO codename of "Farmer" with its Soviet counterpart since it was a licensed build of the MiG-19 series, was the main fighter jet of the PLAAF since the early 1960s. As the first country to build supersonic jets in Asia, the J-6 and its different variants were in service with the PLAAF for nearly 4 decades before they were finally replaced by new jets. Although already deemed obsolete by the time the F-104 and MiG-21 series joined their respective air forces, the J-6 scored some victories over the ROCAF and US(N)AF against their jets and drones, as well as overseas victories by other users. The jet also served as a platform of different prototypes, and was the predecessor of the Nanchang Q-5, with 60% of the parts interchangeable.

Introduced to the game alongside the Chinese tech tree in Update 1.91 "Night Vision", the J-6 plays identically to the MiG-19PT previously introduced about a year earlier. The immense acceleration paired with its firepower strike fear in subsonic jets that cannot chase it; but do beware of its subpar manoeuvrability at transonic speeds where it will have a hard time pulling out from dives. Although it can face more advanced jets such as MiG-21s and Phantoms, if players are able to lure them into a dogfight, the 30 mm cannons will never disappoint as they can tear down enemy targets with ease; alternatively, the PL-2 missiles can also prove effective if they have used up all their energy/flares to escape from the inevitable.

General info

Flight performance

Air brakes

Allows you to dramatically reduce the flight speed by releasing special flaps

Drogue parachute

Reduces braking distance when landing on any runway

Max speed

at 10 000 m1 436 km/h

Turn time32 s

Max altitude17 200 m

Engine2 х Shenyang Liming WP-6a

Type

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight9 t

Compression at high speeds is an issue for this aircraft. It especially affects the rudder. However, the J-6A generally has a very responsive elevator, although excessive turning will bleed much speed due to the poor energy retention. As with many jets, manoeuvrability is poor at low speeds.

The aircraft has very good acceleration and climb rate.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 10,000 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	1,426	1,421	17200	32.4	32.9	159.4	148.4	500
Upgraded	1,449	1,436		31.6	32.0	203.2	180.0

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear	Drogue chute
X	✓	✓	✓	X	✓

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
1260	577	N/A	500	450	~11	~5

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 540	< 650	< 350	N/A

Engine performance

Engine			Aircraft mass
Engine name		Number	Basic mass		Wing loading (full fuel)
Shenyang Liming WP-6a		2	5,853 kg		304 kg/m2
Engine characteristics			Mass with fuel (no weapons load)			Max Takeoff Weight
Weight (each)	Type		7m fuel	20m fuel	25m fuel
725 kg	Afterburning axial-flow turbojet		6,393 kg	7,254 kg	7,653 kg	9,100 kg
Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB)			Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP)
Condition	100%	WEP	7m fuel	20m fuel	25m fuel	MTOW
Stationary	2,296 kgf	3,218 kgf	1.01	0.89	0.84	0.71
Optimal	2,320 kgf (1,000 km/h)	3,284 kgf (1,000 km/h)	1.03	0.91	0.86	0.72

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural1 260 km/h

Gear577 km/h

The aircraft is fairly fragile, with any hits likely to damage the engines due to how much space they take up inside the plane. When spaded one engine has enough power to get you back to base, but while stock it is a little harder and you may end up crashing. One benefit of the J-6A though is that the elevators are separate to each other in the damage model, and therefore a hit to the tail causing an elevator loss isn't the end of the world, since the remaining one is good enough to continue the fight. Another point to note is that loss of oil in either engine will rapidly cause engine failure, so it is best to return to base ASAP when damaged.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 831 → 4 104

RB9 434 → 13 679

SB9 229 → 13 382

Total cost of modifications168 000

262 000

Talisman cost2 600

Crew training150 000

Experts520 000

Aces2 400

Research Aces950 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

120 / 380 / 600 %

220 / 220 / 220 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400 Compressor Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400 Airframe Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 340 New boosters Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 340 Wings repair Research: 14 000 Cost: 22 000 510 G-suit Research: 14 000 Cost: 22 000 510 Cover Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400 Engine Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400 EFS Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400		Type 100-2 Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400 NR_30_belt_pack Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 340 S-5K Research: 9 500 Cost: 15 000 340 Type 250 Research: 14 000 Cost: 22 000 510 NR_30_new_gun Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400 PL-2 Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 400

Armaments

Offensive armament

The J-6A is armed with:

• 2 x 30 mm Type 30-1 cannons, wing-mounted (70 rpg = 140 total)

The J-6A carries two 30 mm Type 30-1 cannons, mounted in the wing roots. They are licensed copies of the MiG-19's NR-30 cannons and offer identical performance. Each gun has 70 rounds of ammunition, making a total of 140 rounds. The Type 30-1 cannons are very fast firing so this is not much ammo, and you can't afford to spray. The guns however are extremely powerful, and only a couple of rounds hitting an enemy aircraft will severely cripple them, if not outright kill them. The shell velocity is very high and you don't need much lead to hit a target.

The recommended belts for this aircraft are "Armoured targets", they're more reliable than the "Air targets" belt and tend to take off wings and large sections, and destroy engines with one hit, in comparison to the "Air targets" belts which tend to spark or just damage external modules. The ground belts contain APHE rounds with 60 mm of penetration, but it is not really worth going for ground targets as the limited ammunition and high speed of the aircraft makes it very difficult to hit or kill anything.

Suspended armament

The J-6A can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

	1	2	3	4	5	6
100 kg OFAB-100 bombs		1			1
250 kg OFAB-250sv bombs		1			1
S-5K rockets		8	8	8	8
PL-2 missiles	1					1

Default weapon presets
Without load 2 x PL-2 missiles 32 x S-5K rockets 2 x 100 kg OFAB-100 bombs (200 kg total) 2 x 250 kg OFAB-250sv bombs (500 kg total)

The J-6A can be equipped with PL-2 missiles, licensed copies of the Soviet R-3S with identical performance.

The ideal use-case for the PL-2 is when you're at very high speed, following something like a Phantom from around a mile. The missile will get to the target before they can react, and with large targets like the Phantom, they can't pull hard enough at those speeds to evade the missile. It is not recommended to fire the missile in any sort of turn as they will just lose track.

Usage in battles

The J-6A has great vertical energy retention and acceleration, so you should use this to your advantage. Taking the enemies vertical is the best move as they will quickly lose energy while you can maintain it. Once at high speed, the J-6A will out-accelerate almost all other aircraft, so once you're on the tail of an enemy they will not have many options. The airbrake is also a very effective tool, allowing you to stay behind someone if they try to force you to overshoot and the plane also rolls well enough that you can engage in rolling scissors if need be.

It is recommended to avoid throttling down the engine as it has an extremely long spool time until it produces max thrust and this will let your opponent get away from you while you struggle to accelerate.

Radars

The J-6A is equipped with a RP-5 search radar, located in the nose of the aircraft.

RP-5
Maximum Detection Range	Guaranteed Detection Range	Max Azimuth Scan Angle	Max Elevation Scan Angle
12,000 m	8,000 m	±60°	-0°/+5°

The J-6A is equipped with a RP-5 track radar, located in the nose of the aircraft.

RP-5
Maximum Tracking Range	Minimum Tracking Range	Azimuth Tracking Angle	Elevation Tracking Angle
4,500 m	150 m	±7°	±7°

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Higher top speed possible than F-100D at most altitudes, although very comparable to it at sea level
• Incredibly high rate of climb
• Hard-hitting guns, low recoil effects due to wing root placement
• Great vertical energy retention
• Roll rate superior to the J-4
• Incredible acceleration from 600-900 km/h, so it is able to regain energy very fast
• Has a target detection and tracking radar
• Decent manoeuvrability

Cons:

• Compression at high speed, wings don't provide as much lift as the Super Sabre
• Wings can rip when rolling and turning at high speed
• Only two air-to-air missiles, locking range is 0.5 km less than that of the AIM-9B on F-100D
• Poor low-speed manoeuvrability
• Ventral fin will impact the ground during takeoff if the rotation is prematurely initiated resulting in the tail breaking off
• Engines are huge; can be easily disabled by enemy fire
• Radar suite is not as good as the one fitted on the Javelin F.(A.W.) Mk.9 and Mitsubishi T-2

History

The People's Republic of China received considerable military and technological assistance from the Soviet Union for most of the 1950s. Significant quantities of jet fighters, including the MiG-9, MiG-15bis, MiG-17, and others were purchased to modernize the nation's otherwise haphazard and antiquated air force, which at the end of the Chinese Civil War consisted of assorted captured American and Japanese aircraft. Production licenses were secured for the MiG-17 and MiG-19, and these two aircraft models were produced as the domestic Shenyang J-5 and Shenyang J-6.

The J-6A, aka Dongfeng 102 (东风102) or Type 59 Interceptor (59式歼击机), was intended as an equivalent of the MiG-19P and first flew in 1958. Quality control issues, resulting from the limited experience of the Chinese manufacturing industry at the time, meant that the performance of the aircraft was inferior to the original. The aircraft was rejected by the PLAAF and production was limited. In the mid 1970s, production was restarted with new jigs from the Soviet Union. These new aircraft were of an acceptable standard and entered PLAAF service in extensive numbers.

A large number of variants and prototypes were made, though their designations and designs are muddied and difficult to research. The "J-6B" variant was a copy of the Soviet MiG-19PM interceptor model, which lacked cannon armament and was armed solely with beam riding air-to-air missiles, though its performance was unsatisfactory like the early J-6A and only a small number were produced. Several models were designed after the MiG-19S and a handful entered serial production. Later variants relocated the braking parachute to the base of the rudder. Various prototypes experimented with MiG-21 style shock cones. Reconnaissance and two-seat trainer variants were also manufactured, the latter being notable since the Soviet Union did not manufacture any MiG-19 trainer variants. One trainer airframe, known as BW-1 (变稳-1) was used to test the fly-by-wire system of the JH-7 fighter-bomber.

The J-6 served in the PLAAF for far longer than the MiG-19 had in the VVS. While it became outdated and suffered from numerous issues regarding service life and quality, the Chinese aircraft industry learned a considerable amount from its development and manufacturing. The J-6/MiG-19 design was further developed into the more well-known Nanchang Q-5 attacker.

During its 4-decade-long service life since 1962, J-6 served as the cornerstone of PLAAF and scored quite a few victories over ROCAF and USAF/USN; the J-6 was also exported to several nations under the "F-6" designation and participated in several conflicts. The F-6 was operated by Pakistan in the 1971 war with India (with some victories over the IAF), by Vietnam in the Vietnam War (alongside the original MiG-19), and curiously enough by both Iran and Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War. In these conflicts the F-6 was often relegated to air-to-ground missions since its speed and avionics were inadequate, though it was capable of dispatching subsonic aircraft and could outmanoeuvre faster jets in a dogfight.

At present, the J-6 has been retired by most of its users, with North Korea having the largest number of remaining jets in service.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the J-6A from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Related development

• MiG-19 (Family)

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance

Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (中航工业沈阳飞机工业(集团)有限公司)
Jet Fighters
MiG-15	J-2*
MiG-17	J-4*
MiG-19	J-6A*
J-8	J-8B · J-8F
Su-27 variants	J-11* · J-11A*
Export	Shenyang F-5*
	*Licensed Note: "J-2" and "J-4" are not official designations
See Also	Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau