Zhuhai air show shows new China weaponry

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ZHUHAI, China, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- The six-day, ninth China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition ended Sunday after drawing nearly a quarter of a million visitors.

More than 650 exhibitors from 39 nations attended the display in Zhuhai in China's southern Guangdong province, with more than 230,000 visitors from across China visiting during the three days that it was opened to the public.

Highlights included a scale mockup of the Shenyang J-31, China's fifth-generation stealth fighter, which is under development by the Shenyang Aircraft Corp.

Other indigenous military goods on display included several Chinese-made aircraft engines that could be used on fighter jets, unmanned aerial vehicles and commercial airplanes, the South China Morning Post reported on Monday.

China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition has been held biannually since 1996, with the next one scheduled for 2014.

An exhibition organizer said, 30 contracts worth a record $11.8 billion were signed during the event, adding that 113 aircraft were displayed at the show, with 39 participating in fly-over performances.