The People's Liberation Army (PLA) bomber force is merely a regional bombing force and has not yet reached the level of long-range strike capabilities like those of the U.S. Air Force?

On the 10th, the U.S. "The Drive" website published an interview with the newly appointed commander of the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command, Stephen Davis. In the interview, Davis made sharp comments on the long-range strike and bombing capabilities of the Chinese and U.S. air forces, and stated the above two controversial remarks.

Davis's remarks actually involved a play on words

Davis's original statement was: "He fully understands China's desire to possess long-range strike capabilities like those of the United States, and knows that China is actively advancing the H-20 project," but he believes China "has not yet reached that level" and "wants to imitate but cannot do so," so China currently "has at most a regional bombing force," although it is "continuing to develop this capability." 

Objectively speaking, if we look only at the current equipment composition of the PLA Air Force bomber force, Davis's remarks indeed have little to be criticized about: the current Chinese bomber fleet, mainly consisting of the H-6 series, has a range and payload primarily focused on the Western Pacific and surrounding key areas, which does not amount to true global delivery capability—viewed from this narrow perspective, the PLA bomber force is indeed a regional bombing force.

Without these bases, the U.S. military's global strike would not be possible

However, the problem with Davis's remarks lies in his deliberate play on words. The "global strike capability" he boasts about certainly includes the advanced design specifications of the B-2 or B-21 bombers, but ultimately still relies on the U.S. military's global base network and alliance system.

It is precisely because of the existence of these forward-deployed bases and logistics hubs that the U.S. military's "takeoff from the homeland, global strike" is realized. If these bases and ally support are stripped away, the U.S. Air Force would also be a regional bombing force.

Taking the "Midnight Hammer" operation by the U.S. military to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities last year as an example. At that time, the U.S. B-2 bombers did indeed take off from the U.S. homeland and conducted a long-range strike on Iran—but the crucial detail was that the B-2 conducted multiple aerial refuelings throughout its flight path across the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, and into the Middle East. These refueling aircraft were deployed in key nodes such as the Azores Islands and Morón Air Base in Spain weeks or even months in advance.

The flying wing layout is not an insurmountable technical bottleneck

In other words, without the support of these overseas bases providing a fleet of refueling aircraft, relying solely on the B-2's own range and carrying nearly 30 tons of two large penetrating bombs, this ultra-long-range strike mission from the U.S. homeland to Iran would be impossible. The so-called "global strike" by the U.S. military is essentially a regional extension of power based on the global base system.

On the other hand, Davis's evaluation of the H-20 falls into a "projection of one's own views" mindset, as if he assumes that the H-20 is a copy of the U.S. B-2 bomber, and that China is pursuing the development of a flying-wing stealth strategic bomber.

But in fact, if Davis had paid attention to the recent progress of China's aviation industry, he would not have drawn such hasty conclusions: in recent years, the multiple large flying-wing aircraft exposed by China are sufficient to indicate that the flying-wing layout is no longer an insurmountable obstacle for China's aviation industry.

Like sixth-generation fighters, when something beyond comprehension appears, Americans can only evaluate it with their limited understanding

The reason why the H-20 has not appeared despite being "called for" so many times actually indicates that China's aerospace industry's goal goes far beyond simply "copying" a Chinese version of the B-2 bomber.

Today's China is no longer in the stage where it had to concentrate all resources to create just a few "killer weapons." The next-generation bomber is no longer seen as a "decisive weapon," but rather as part of the entire joint operations system.

This development approach based on system integration is far more meaningful than simply chasing performance indicators to match the U.S. military. When the H-20 finally makes its official debut, looking back at Davis's remarks today may only make people laugh it off.



Original: toutiao.com/article/7605528488308687369/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.