A recruitment video by China's People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), released on January 5, is creating a buzz as it has provided an 'official' glimpse of the design of Beijing's secretive stealth bomber.
Previous teaser images of the aircraft have indicated a 'flying wing' design similar to the US B-2 and B-21 stealth bombers.
The aircraft appears towards the end of the 4-minute-long video of the PLAAF.
"In the closing minute of the video, an unknown aircraft rendered in computer-generated imagery enters the stage. It is covered in a white blanket and only the front outline can be seen, which suggests that the aircraft boasts a flying wing design with two intakes on the back of the plane. It has no visible tail wings and no winglets on the tips of the wings," China's Global Times reported on Wednesday.
The Chinese stealth bomber project has been referred to as the 'H-20' by analysts in China and overseas.
In 2018, China's state-owned Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC) released a video, teasing the shape of the stealth bomber.
Wei Dongxu, a Chinese analyst, told Global Times the aircraft may be revealed to the public soon.
"The H-20 has been the subject of speculation for a long time, and now the Air Force has displayed its vague outline in a recruitment video. This possibly means the outline and design of the aircraft are no longer top secrets, and the development project has made significant progresses, Wei said," Global Times reported.
In its annual report on China's military, released in September last year, the US Pentagon estimated the H-20 stealth bomber "could debut sometime in the next decade with the following features: a stealthy design, employing many fifth-generation technologies; a likely range of at least 8,500 km; a payload of at least 10 metric tons; and a capability to employ both conventional and nuclear weaponry."
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China currently uses upgraded derivatives of the H-6, a 1950s-era Soviet-designed strategic bomber. China has upgraded its H-6 bombers to fire long-range cruise missiles, though the aircraft is limited by its poor range and weapons carriage capabilities.
A stealth bomber would provide a radical upgrade in capabilities to China to carry out attack missions against advanced rivals such as India, China or US bases in the Asia-Pacific.
