( CNN ) -- China took its latest powerful toy , a new stealth fighter jet , out for its first test spin Tuesday , leading U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates to wonder whether the flight was scheduled to coincide with his visit . `` I asked President Hu ( Jintao ) about it directly , '' Gates said at a briefing with reporters in Beijing . `` And he said that the test had absolutely nothing to do with my visit and had been a pre-planned test . And that 's where we left it . '' Images and videos of China 's latest generation fighter , being called the J-20 , hit the web in a frenzy of excitement in late December . Onlookers outside the airfield base have been allowed to use cell phones to snap pictures and record low resolution video , a decision that many experts point to as a move by China to pump its chest in advance of Gates ' trip to China and Hu 's visit to the United States next week . Tuesday 's test flight appeared to be no different in regard to the viral marketing . Videos and pictures have hit the web , some showing crowds of people lined up alongside the airfield gate in southern China , cheering and jumping up and down as the fighter lands . Gates however , who made the trip to discuss military relations between the United States and China , said he believes the Chinese president 's assurance that the test flight had been previously planned . `` I take President Hu at his word that ... the test had nothing to do with my visit , '' Gates said . One China watcher is skeptical . `` It was planned this way , a classic exercise in power projection , '' said China military scholar Richard Fisher . `` They want President Obama and the new Congress to view Hu Jintao , who visits next week , as the leader of the next military superpower , whose demands must be accommodated . '' Analysts believe the J-20 stealth fighter will have the radar-evading capability of fifth-generation fighters produced by the United States , like the F-22 and F-35 . And while the jet is n't supposed to be operational until at least 2017 , Fisher said that after Tuesday 's test flight , China has the potential to deploy the fighter at an earlier date using a less-powerful engine than the one currently in development . Gates conceded that fact on his flight over to China last weekend . `` I think that what we 've seen is that they may be somewhat further ahead in the development of that aircraft than our intelligence had earlier predicted , '' Gates said . Still , Gates downplayed the technical advancements in the plane , questioning how `` stealthy , '' or radar evading , it actually is . In 2009 , Gates said that no nation comes close to the United States ' air power , and he expected the Chinese to have only `` a handful '' of fighters that could challenge the U.S. advanced fleets by 2025 . Despite Tuesday 's air show by the Chinese , Gates said he would not revise that assessment and added that another Asian power , Japan , is considering purchasing its next generation of fighter aircraft . `` And I might have a few suggestions for them , '' Gates said .
Gates says the Chinese president said the timing of the test was coincidental . A China watcher , however , says it coincided with Gates ' visit on purpose . `` A classic exercise in power projection , '' says China military scholar Richard Fisher .