Details of Chinese Y-20 emerge

Following the successful maiden flight of the Y-20, China’s first domestically developed heavy air transport, Chinese media revealed further details of the project on 26 January.

The development of a strategic airlifter is likely to enhance the People’s Liberation Army’s reach and could well also prove a powerful diplomatic tool.

The official codename of the aircraft is Kunpeng, named after a legendary bird in Chinese mythology that can fly thousands of kilometres, according to China Daily. The aircraft is believed to have been developed by Xi’an Aircraft Industry, a subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corporation of China, the country’s major military aircraft manufacturer.

The Y-20 is expected to have a crew of three and a maximum payload of 66 metric tons and a maximum takeoff weight of more than 200 tons. The high payload means the aircraft should be capable of flying the heaviest of the PLA’s main battle tanks, the 58-ton Type-99A2.

The aircraft is 47m long and has a wingspan of 50m, the report said.

Local sources said the aircraft began development in the early 1990s and in 2006 it was listed in a national mid- and long-term technological development plan. Photos of the Y-20 began to circulate on Chinese military websites on 24 December last year, leading to speculation that the aircraft would soon conduct its first test flight.


Source: by the Shephard News Team in London - 29 January 2013

Photo: The Chinese Air Force Y-20 Aircraft (Photo by Shephard News)


(28.01.2013)