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Xian H-20 vs. B21 Raider – China and the USA compete in a super bomber race
It is speculated that the H-20 could make its first launch later this year
© Screenshot Youtube / PR
China and USA are each developing a strategic super bomber. They should be operational by the end of the decade. Neither side can afford to make a mistake in this prestige duel.
China has been working on a strategic bomber since the early 2000s. Originally, a supersonic bomber was favored that did its job quickly and nimbly. Because of advances in anti-aircraft defense, the project later switched to a slower stealth bomber. The H-20 bomber was mentioned for the first time in 2016, only four years later it was shown at a trade fair. The bomber is designed as a “flying wing” to keep the radar shadow small – similar to the upcoming US bomber, the B-21 Raider.
Enter the airspace undetected
Both are aircraft that are difficult to detect by radar and can penetrate deep into an enemy’s anti-aircraft screen undetected. The operational range of the Xian H-20 is said to be over 8,000 kilometers without refueling in the air. Added to this would be the range of the rockets and cruise missiles used. This would allow the H-20 to attack targets far beyond US bases in Japan, Guam and the Philippines from mainland China. The Xian H-20 could even reach Australia or Hawaii.
The H-20 is believed to be designed to function as a fully networked reconnaissance and command and control platform, similar to the US F-35 jets. Then the stealth bombers could not only use their own weapons on board, but they could direct Beijing’s entire arsenal of long-range air, ground and sea missiles and assign targets to distant missiles.
This interconnectedness promotes a dangerous trend in the arms race of the great military powers. When missiles are deployed from remote command stations, they no longer need to be transported on modern and expensive warships, they can then be stationed in container-sized launch boxes virtually anywhere on a fishing boat.
Ready for use by the end of the decade
Even though the H-20 has already been shown, that doesn’t mean it’s operational. Full functionality is expected towards the end of the decade. H-20 and the new US strategic bomber, the B-21 Raider, are scheduled to be ready around the same time. As a standalone system, the X-20 is the Chinese military’s most demanding project. The race between H-20 and B-21 is also becoming a PR battle in the “race of the systems” in which neither side can afford long delays.
Will China reach the level of the B-21?
With the H-20, China would have modernized its “nuclear triad” of ground-launched ICBMs, submarine missiles and air-launched nuclear weapons. The current H-6K strategic bomber, like its US counterpart the B-52, is a relic of the Cold War. The Xian H-20 stealth bomber will give Beijing a true nuclear triad – the ability to launch nuclear weapons from land, air and sea. It is completely open whether Beijing will succeed in catching up with the latest US bomber from a standing start.
“Depending on the aircraft’s capabilities, deployed overall range and stealth characteristics, the H-20 appears to be a real game-changer for the Chinese Air Force,” said US military expert Harry J. Kazianis. “However, as most reports point out, we don’t have much hard data to draw our conclusions from. Nonetheless, over the past fifteen years, China has continued to surprise us with new military hardware such as carrier-killer missiles, aircraft carriers and stealth fighters. I wouldn’t exempt the H-20 from this as it might resemble the new B-21 Raider more than the (older – the editor) B-2 Spirit.”
From the outside, only the rough design decisions can be seen on both bombers. The capabilities of the electronics or the stealth coatings, which are decisive in use, cannot be assessed in this way. But by 2030, Beijing generally wants to have left the “chasing after” phase behind. A second place behind the USA would not be acceptable for the prestige project of the super bomber.