Stealthy Xian H-20 Bomber Preparing For First Flight?

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By Kris Osborn – President & Editor-In-Chief, Warrior Maven

A Bulgarian newspaper says the People’s Liberation Army – Air Force is preparing its new stealthy Xian H-20 bomber for its first flight. The essay, from July of 2022, cites Chinese officials saying the aircraft will soon be “revealed.” It is a much anticipated, next-generation stealthy B-2 or B-21-like platform slated to become operational this year or next year.

Xian H-20 Bomber

While certainly the configuration and performance parameters of the H-20 are likely to be of great interest to the Pentagon, there have not been many images, renderings or actual “appearances” of the aircraft in advanced stages of development close to operational status.

While the H-20 still remains mysterious to a large degree, it may not at all come close to rivaling the Air Force’s new B-21.

Interestingly, although much is still not known about the platform, its existence was cited in the Pentagon’s 2018 and 2019 annual “China Military Power Report.” The 2019 report specifies that the new H-20 will likely have a range of “at least 8,500km” and “employ both conventional and nuclear weaponry.”

Interestingly, the image shown in the Bulgarian military report shows angled “wingtips” as opposed to a sleek, flat, straight wing like that used by the B-2 and B-21. An angled “upward” structure seeming to protrude a little seems a bit less stealthy than a straight wing as it would be more likely to generate a return “ping” or radar signature to enemy air defenses. Whereas, a blended-wing-body type of fuselage, without upward protruding wing-tips or tails is designed to appear like “bird” to enemy radar by virtue of not generating a sufficient “rendering’ or return signal to enemy radar. At the same time, the picture of the H-20 does seem to show that the wing-tips are “foldable,” meaning they can straighten. This might make then stealthier but could introduce a detectable “seam” or “break” in what might need to be a smooth exterior.