According to early reports, China is developing a new stealth bomber to counter American influence in the Far East and firm up its own leadership and force-projection ability.
We’ve previously discussed America’s plans to replace the illustrious SR-71 Blackbird with an unmanned, hypersonic successor capable of launching ordinance from space. The aptly-named SR-72 — with a cruise of Mach 6 — would perform intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and, while bereft of stealth features, Mach 6 leaves absolutely zero reaction time.
Read: This hypersonic Blackbird can launch weapons from space
Concept art for China’s H-20 stealth bomber.
China’s prospective stealth bomber, the H-20, will be subsonic (aka, less than the speed of sound, or Mach 1), but the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has traditionally been weak in the area of long-range strike aircraft. This new development will shore up that weakness and enable China to deny the US entry into the First Island Chain, which covers Alaska to the Philippines.
An outdated craft — which will be even more outdated by the rumored 2025 completion date — isn’t preferable for China, but since Russia refused to share their Tu-22M supersonic long-range strategic bomber, the PLA will be forced to rely on an indigenous design, developed by their very own Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation.
And while the world’s leading militaries are moving beyond subsonic vessels, the H-20 — said to be a low-observable “flying wing” craft — could go the unmanned route. This, of course, could significantly upgrade the craft’s capabilities — with no physiological limitations to speak of. Whether the H-20’s prospective airframe could support these ambitious capabilities is another story, but it leaves the door open.
Expect to hear more on the H-20 soon. The stealth bomber is years from completion, and China is keeping a tight lid on it, but the PLA’s propaganda arm loves to flex its (hypothetical) muscles. LINK
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