My read on that is that by "debut" they mean IOC, which would suggest that prototypes will fly in the 2020s.
H-20 bomber (with H-X, JH-XX)
- Thread starter Deino
- Start date
Debut could easily mean official entry into service and mass production, not the first flight. The J36 also won't be entering active service until the 2030s, but we just saw it's prototype flying around.
A supersonic bomber like the B-1 or TU-160, even though its fast, still isn't going to outmaneuver any missile at all, so I don't believe the PLAAF will decide to degrade stealth by adding a beak or folding stabilizers simply to design an airframe which is capable of between mach 1 and mach 2. It is much better to simply maximize stealth, a flying wing shape with one continuous leading edge, similar to B-21 or B-2.
There is no point in sacrificing stealth just to make it a little faster, missile will catch up to it regardless.
There is no point in sacrificing stealth just to make it a little faster, missile will catch up to it regardless.
Where did they say that?
On page 92 of this .
You think these companies are independently running their own programs with no oversight and central planning from the PLA? "oh oops we didn't know what we guys were doing. Wish you had shown us what you were working on. look at all these money we wasted. tehe"
It says it may debut “in the next decade.” Does that mean 2030s or next 10 years? I know I’m grasping at straws a bit but I am just hoping for some good news
The most plausible read is that the H-20 will enter service in the 2030s, which would suggest a maiden flight in the 2020s.
As such, the H-20 can be expected to enter service within a similar timeframe as the J-36 and the J-XX.
why not 2 programs running in parallel, with 1 having an aerodynamically ambitious airframe that is more experimental and 1 having a conservative airframe that they know works?
And as the aerodynamically ambitious airframe proves its worth more and more, the advantages of the conservative airframe are reduced or even eliminated, resulting in the program 2 being reoriented towards using the formerly experimental, but now proven, airframe type?
The same Pentagon that spent 9 years on NGAD before realizing China's 6th gen program made it obsolete, or the Pentagon that thought J-20 won't fly until 2020s?