Chinese spies stole plans for new RAAF jet, documents reveal

Chinese spies stole key design information about Australia's new Joint Strike Fighter, according to a top secret US National Security Agency (NSA) presentation.

The presentation, leaked by former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden and published by German magazine Der Spiegel, details signals intelligence collected by the NSA and shared with its "Five Eyes" partners — Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

It shows that sensitive military information about the jet — also known as the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II — was stolen from the US by Chinese cyber spies, including the jet's engine schematics, details of its radar systems for tracking targets, methods for cooling exhaust gases and "aft deck heating contour maps".

In April 2014 Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced that Australia would spend $12 billion on buying 58 more F-35 fighters, bringing the nation's total planned F-35 force to 72 aircraft.

The first of the jets will enter service with the Royal Australian Air Force in 2020.

The design of China's latest jet fighters — the Chengdu J-20 and the Shenyang J-31 — is thought to be heavily influenced by design information stolen from the US, eroding the air power superiority of the US and its allies.