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By 1962 the Chinese aviation industry had reverse-engineered the MiG-21 and placed it into production as the J-7. In order to cope with the emerging threat posed by the American F-4 Phantom and U-2 strategic reconnaissance aircraft, the PLAAF in 1964 called for development of a new fighter aircraft with performance surpassing that of the J-7. The request emphasised the need for high-speed performance at high altitudes. In response to the PLAAF's request, the 601 Institute and Shenyang aircraft factory proposed two new technology development plans, namely the J-8 and J-9 plans.

J-8: In 1964, the 601 Institute proposed the J-8 to meet the PLAAF requirement for a high-altitude interceptor. This design took the MiG-21/J-7 and enlarged the fuselage, installed two WP-7B afterburning turbojets but retained the nose intake. The prototype J-8 flew in 1969 and achieved a maximum speed of Mach 2.2 and a ceiling of 20,000 metres. It mounted a 23mm twin-barrel cannon and could carry two underwing PL-2A infrared homing air-to-air missiles. Test flights continued during the Cultural Revolution, but no production could take place. The all-weather advanced version (J-8-I), used an SR-4 airborne intercept radar and increased the missile load to four. The J-8 finally entered service in 1981 (but was still referred to as "an operational testbed aircraft" in the late 1980s). The J-8 was the first independently developed fighter aircraft to enter service with the PLAAF.

J-9: The J-9 project ran in parallel with the J-8 project but used a completely new airframe. The design target maximum speed was Mach 2.4 at above 20,000 metres altitude. In order to achieve this target the J-9 was fitted with an 8,500kg thrust turbojet engine and the 601 Institute initially used a tailless delta design. Development at this point shifted to the newly built 611 Institute and the Chengdu Aircraft Factory. At the beginning of the 1970s, the 611 Institute proposed a new design using a canard ahead of the delta wing (not dissimilar to the Swedish Viggen), but because it required new materials and know-how plus engine performance problems it wasn't until 1975 before the design could be completed. The new J-9 design was quite advanced with air intakes on the fuselage sides featuring variable inlet geometry to alter the compression mixture. It used a 12,400 kg wet thrust turbofan engine and featured a Type 205 radar (search range about 70km) and four PL-4 radar-guided air-to-air missiles. The J-9 plan was discontinued in 1980. However, the effort was not totally wasted as the J-9 development enabled Chinese engineers to gain experience with the canard layout type, experience that would prove useful in the J-10 project.