Strategic bombers remain “irreplaceable” for China’s military – even as it makes progress with sixth-generation fighters and long-range missiles – given their role in global strikes and nuclear deterrence, analysts say.
They pointed to the American B-2 stealth bombers that hit Iran’s three nuclear sites on Saturday, dropping bunker-buster bombs directly over the facilities before returning unscathed.
Seven of the B-2 bombers were flown nearly 27,000km (16,700 miles) – supported by more than 100 other aircraft including aerial tankers – in the mission that lasted 37 hours.
With China’s next-gen stealth bomber, the H-20, still under development, analysts said the US Air Force operation underscored the importance of these warplanes.
“A dedicated strategic bomber is irreplaceable, even in an era when other long‑range strike options exist,” said Song Zhongping, a military analyst and former People’s Liberation Army instructor.
“A strategic bomber can carry out both nuclear and conventional attacks. It is a vital weapon for any major military power, and one that cannot be sacrificed for another.”
He said whether a sixth-generation fighter jet would be able to take on that role would depend largely on its range.
China has two known sixth-gen fighter jets under development, with prototypes of the J-36 and J-50 – said to be designed for both combat fighter and bomber roles – seen in test flights since late last year.
The US Air Force’s B-2 has a range exceeding 10,000km, allowing it to carry out intercontinental strikes.
“That is the essence of a strategic weapon – the ability to operate across continents,” Song said. “The B‑2, B‑1B and B‑52 all fulfil this role for the US. At present, China still lacks this long‑range strategic strike capability.”
Only the US, Russia and China have long-range strategic bombers in operation. Britain and France retired their bomber fleets decades ago, concluding that the expensive, long-range assets were no longer a priority after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The US and the USSR built long‑distance bombers with ranges exceeding 10,000km, making them integral to nuclear deterrence.
The American B‑52H was introduced in the 1950s and remains in service, with a range of 16,000km and payload capacity of 31.5 tonnes. That compares to Russia’s Tu‑95MS – a modernised version of a 1950s bomber – which can carry 25 tonnes of weapons across 15,000km.
In the 1970s, both nations took their bomber designs further – the Soviets with the supersonic Tu‑160 and the Americans with the stealth B‑2 – ensuring that the strategic bomber remained a symbol of military might.
Although expensive to maintain, these warplanes have proven their worth, carrying long‑range weapons that are too bulky for fighter aircraft.
Both the US and Russia have a fleet of around 100 strategic bombers that are a critical part of their nuclear triads and a means to carry out precision long-range strikes. They have no equivalent in this role, offering a level of deterrence and global reach that even aircraft carriers struggle to match.
China did not join the strategic bomber race until the 1960s, starting with the H‑6, a licence‑built variant of the Soviet Tu‑16 which was upgraded over the years to extend its range and payload.
The H‑6K and H‑6N were the first part of China’s dual-track approach, extending the range to roughly 8,000km and adding precision‑strike and nuclear capabilities, making the H‑6N China’s first true strategic bomber.
The second part of this effort is the long‑anticipated H‑20, which will fill the gap in the PLA’s strategic bomber force, putting it alongside – and potentially ahead of, in some respects – the US and Russia.
While US advances in stealth bomber design have long set a global benchmark, Chinese experts have suggested the H‑20 will surpass the B‑21.
The B-21 has been described as the “least detectable aircraft” to date, though Song said it was “essentially a scaled‑down version of the outdated B‑2”, with a shorter range of 8,000km to 10,000km and a smaller payload of 15 to 18 tonnes compared with the B-2.
He said while the B-21 incorporated many design elements from the B-2, “the H‑20 benefits from more recent advances in stealth and aerospace engineering”.
“This gives the Chinese stealth bomber a later, and in many ways superior, technological baseline,” Song said.
Strategic bombers can also serve as highly visible nuclear deterrents.
“A truly strong nuclear force rests upon a triad – land, sea and air. The strategic bomber is the air leg of that triad,” Song said.
He noted that bombers could be crewed, uncrewed or a mix of both, which he said was the best approach to reduce pilot fatigue on long-range missions.
Satellite images of a secretive Chinese airbase in Xinjiang have revealed a huge stealth drone with a wingspan of about 52 metres (170 feet) parked beside a purpose-built hangar similar to the B-2 facilities in Missouri, military news site The War Zone reported earlier this month.
Fu Qianshao, a Chinese military aviation analyst and former air force member, said the design of the drone – reminiscent of the B-2 and larger than the upcoming B-21 – marked a breakthrough in the country’s unmanned aviation programme.
He noted that uncrewed bombers were not a new concept. “All significant unmanned attack platforms can be viewed as bombers, so long as their range and payload match bomber requirements,” Fu said.
“The newly spotted drone, with its flying‑wing layout and V‑shaped tail, appears tailored for long‑endurance, precision reconnaissance and targeting across the Pacific.”
He said such aircraft, in combination with China’s growing arsenal of ballistic and hypersonic weapons, could revolutionise campaigns against US naval forces and deep‑Pacific installations.
Compared to crewed strategic bombers, stealth unmanned aerial vehicles also have a significant cost advantage. Fu said an American B‑2 could cost around US$2.4 billion while a Chinese stealth UAV like the Caihong‑7 had an estimated price tag of US$10 million, making it a more viable option for large‑scale deployment. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
