But both US increased the role for B1B and Russia increased for TU160 currently.
Not so much going into hostile territories but rather sneak in close enough, launch long range cruise missiles,hit and run. They can run fast
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Not so much going into hostile territories but rather sneak in close enough, launch long range cruise missiles,hit and run. They can run fast
The B-One and the Tu-160 saw a recent resurgence due to the Syrian fight where the ISIS forces they were going up against presented a limited surface-to-air threat and practically no air-to-air adversaries they needed to counter.
Considering the potential adversaries the PLA will have to deal with (NATO and India in a nutshell, and not guerrilla ISIS or Taliban forces per se), I doubt a supersonic strategic bomber along the lines of the Bone or the Tu-160 would be able to consistently penetrate the multiple advanced layers of Integrated Air Defense, let alone go up against enemy fighters. Since the shootdowns of the U-2 by Russia/China/Cuba, flying high doesn't guarantee safety against surface threats... and well a bomber will never be quite as maneuverable as an intercepting fighter. Alas I see no need for the PLA to develop a sweep wing supersonic bomber, and why as far as we know the JH-XX has been placed on the back burner. I reckon stealth would be a much more valuable asset for a strategic bomber than speed.
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Except F-14 is not comparable with Tu-160 or other strategic bombers...at all. The only thing it has in common with Tu-160 is literally only the swing wing design, which China already has (go see abandoned Q-6 as example) and has had since the late 70s
There was a time when China would have been well served by buying the Tu-22M3 but I think we're long past that.
The Tu-160 is simply too expensive. It might look like a B-1 but it's about twice as large and has about twice as much engine power.
The quad engine B-1 is about the same weight category as two engine Tu-22M3.
The J-16 is a fine aircraft and it will help China have control over the first island chain. The problem is it doesn't have enough range to go over that without a large tanker fleet. Given that China is further away from the USA mainland than Russia (they can't use the polar route) it becomes obvious then why they went with the flying wing. A subsonic flying wing will have more range and enable intercontinental range. Still I think it would have been useful for China to have something like the Tu-22M3 to enable it to control the seas around the third island chain.
The Tu-160 is simply too expensive. It might look like a B-1 but it's about twice as large and has about twice as much engine power.
The quad engine B-1 is about the same weight category as two engine Tu-22M3.
The J-16 is a fine aircraft and it will help China have control over the first island chain. The problem is it doesn't have enough range to go over that without a large tanker fleet. Given that China is further away from the USA mainland than Russia (they can't use the polar route) it becomes obvious then why they went with the flying wing. A subsonic flying wing will have more range and enable intercontinental range. Still I think it would have been useful for China to have something like the Tu-22M3 to enable it to control the seas around the third island chain.
A certain airbase in Eastern Theater Command is undergoing a major expansion. @Deino, can you identify the location?
Is this Wuhu or Quzhou? My guess is the former.
Please get back on topic. This is not a F-15EX or even a platform discussion thread.
Yes, it's Wuhu and since Wuhu is under renovation, its brigades are relocated to Quzhou.
Any possible implications it might have on the 9th Air Brigade and in particular the J-20?
