China is about to test its own stealth bomber
China's H-20 stealth bomber is set to make its first flight after nearly two decades of development.
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China's H-20 design model. Photo:Defense Blog. |
China Central Television (CCTV) confirmed that the H-20 strategic bomber developed by Beijing will have its first flight in the near future.Asia TimesOctober 10 news.
Although the specific launch time of this bomber was not disclosed, CCTV quoted a source from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) as saying that the aircraft's electronic and hydraulic systems had been completed and tested.
The Chinese Air Force currently has no domestically produced long-range bombers in service. Beijing’s most advanced bomber is the H-6K, a modernized version of the Soviet-designed Tu-16 strategic bomber from the 1950s.
The H-20 project has been underway in Beijing since the early 2000s but was only confirmed in 2016. In a documentary aired in August, CCTV revealed that the aircraft would be called the Hong-20, which means "bomber" in Chinese.
According to experts, the Hong-20 uses a flying wing design similar to the American B-2 Spirit, optimized for long range and stealth against radar. The Hong-20 is said to have a range of 10,000 km and uses four WS-10 jet engines without afterburner.
The completed Hong-20 variant appears to be capable of carrying 20 tons of weapons including bombs and cruise missiles with a range of up to 2,000 km, as well as some futuristic weapons such as the GB-6A stealth missile.
Analysts say the Hong-20 could serve as an airborne command post, as demonstrated by recent Chinese research. The air force is evaluating the ability to coordinate manned and unmanned aircraft, as well as link data from multiple sensor systems to long-range missiles.
