China to develop long-range stealth bombers
- By Zhang Ming'ai
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E-mail China.org.cn, October 24, 2013
China will develop long-range strategic stealth bombers, Professor Wu Guohui of the National Defense University said in a recent interview with people.com.cn.
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The model of China's stealth bomber [people.com.cn] |
For a period of time, the bomber's development was neglected as it was widely believed that the bombers were too heavy and clumsy to handle and could easily be shot down by fighters or firings from the ground, said Wu.
Nevertheless, the strategic stealth bomber has now regained the attention of the United States, Russia and China, said Wu.
Compared with ordinary missiles and fighters, stealth bombers have two advantages, he elaborated.
A missile can be fired only once, but a stealth bomber can fire many rounds, Wu commented.
A bomber on a mission can carry nuclear missiles and other conventional weapons, and can also return to base in the middle of a mission. Yet once the missile is fired, it can no longer be retrieved, he added.
The U.S. has decided to invest US$ 1.2 billion every year to develop its second generation of long-range stealth bomber based on the original B-2 Stealth Bomber developed in the late 1970s. Over the next few years, it is set to produce 80 to 100 new stealth bombers.
Russia is currently upgrading its in-service bombers, as well as developing a new generation of stealth bombers.
The stealth bomber is usually deemed the most important milestone in flight products for the overall aviation industry. At this time, only the U.S. has developed four types of manned stealth bombers: Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk, A-12 Stealth Bomber, B-2 Stealth Bomber and Next Generation Bomber (NGB). Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk has already been taken out of active service; the development projects of the A-12 stealth bomber and NGB have been shelved. At present, the B-2 Stealth Bomber is the world's only manned stealth bomber in service. Russia is still developing its stealth bomber.
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