PHOTO: China’s first stealth fighter jet

China’s state media published pictures Wednesday that appear to show a prototype of the country’s first stealth fighter jet.

The move bolsters experts’ claims that China’s military aviation program is taking flight faster than expected.

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The photographs show what appears to be a future J-20 fighter conducting taxi tests on a runway at the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute’s airfield in southwestern China, according to an Associated Press report Wednesday.

Analysis of the images shows the jet to be larger than either the Russian or U.S. stealth planes, likely allowing it fly farther and carry heavier weaponry. That could call into question the U.S. decision to cut funding for its own stealth jet, the F22.