【Military Subplane】Author: Lele
A few days ago, CCTV-7 showed the unconventional picture of the H-6K precision strike on ground/sea targets in the "National Defense Military Morning Post" program, which also awakened the outside world's different memories of this domestic bomber. Judging from the experience of the Russian-Ukrainian war, how to give full play to the advantages of the air precision strike platform is very important to the development of the war situation, and the impression of China in this area is not good for the outside world.
▲In the impression of the outside world, the H-6K series mainly throws long-range weapons
After the start of the war, the Russian Aerospace Forces destroyed the Ukrainian Air Force at a very small cost and mastered battlefield air supremacy in the conventional sense, but the Ukrainian air defense forces still have remnants of their forces active, and the follow-up caused huge losses to the Su-34/24, which had to drop bombs at low altitude due to the lack of guided bombs. Russia will not really solve the problem of mass production of guided bombs until the beginning of 2024, and with it, Su-34 losses will be sharply reduced, and the Russian ground offensive will increase significantly. At the same time, the Su-25, which is planned to carry out close support missions, and the Tu-95MS, which focuses on launching air-based cruise missiles, have become partners of the Su-34/24. Although there are other models in the Aerospace Forces sequence that are theoretically suitable for performing ground missions, they are actually three-stage structures such as the Tu-95MS, Su-34 and Su-25.
▲The Su-34 is the undoubted backbone of the Aerospace Forces
The intensity of these three single attacks decreased, and the number of battle losses increased in turn; in general, the Aerospace Forces were struggling to find a way out on the basis of the equipment, ammunition, and striking ideas left over from the Soviet Union. Although it was not very smooth, it was okay at this stage. The Chinese Air Force does not have such a rich legacy of its predecessors, and it has been very difficult to walk on this road, but it has come through it anyway. Specifically, the H-6D, which came out in the 80s, combined with the specially developed YJ-81, was the first air-guided strike in China. Subsequently, Iraq used the H-6D to strike oil tankers and Iranian oil storage tanks and other ground equipment, and the performance was also okay. However, after the Gulf War, when the United States tested the captured YJ-81, it was found that it could basically achieve 100% interference, and the actual deterrence of the H-6D was seriously insufficient.
▲The H-6D is essentially just a transitional equipment
By the beginning of this century, the H-6M/H/G/, which had been upgraded with avionics/radar, and the J-7A and J-5, had initially set up a long-range, medium-, and near-level strike system, and domestic laser/satellite-guided bombs had also initially matured, and everything had begun to take shape. In 2017, all the J-5 was retired, the J-16 rose and squeezed the J-7A down a position, coupled with the further upgraded H-6K series, the domestic air force is now the H-6K/N, J-16 and J-7A partner mode. The strange thing about the combination of these three is that the J-16 and J-7A have a slightly higher degree of surface overlap, and both are essentially medium and long-range strike platforms. In the Russian Aerospace Forces, the Su-30SM and Su-34 are also in a similar relationship, and the Su-30SM, which was originally well received, had a very embarrassing performance in actual combat, and there was no scenery of multi-role fighters at all.
▲The J-16 incarnates a "bomb truck" and is only looking forward to it
Domestic J-7A and Su-34 belong to the ranks of fighter-bombers, but the technical level is less than three generations, and the load is not as good as the J-16 from large tonnage, which is said to be the main force of ground attack. But in fact, in the tactical training of the Air Force, the proportion of J-16 undertaking ground strike missions is not high, and the J-7A is still the most important domestic guided bomb launch platform, while the J-16 is the positioning of escort and accompanying attacks. In other words, the relationship between the two is similar to that of the Su-30SM and Su-34, except that the J-16 is not as unbearable as the Su-30SM. Although the performance data of the H-6K/N is not as good as that of the Tu-95MS, it is still no problem to launch air-based cruise missiles remotely.
▲The J-7A is still the main force of ground attack
In other words, after more than 30 years of exploration, the domestic air force has also formed a fairly good air strike platform. Compared with the United States and Russia, the biggest feature of the country is that the Qiang-5, which gave up close support early, is still in service. Interestingly, the Su-25 did not perform well on the battlefield, and it is still the model with the largest number of combat losses in the Aerospace Forces, and the United States has also begun to retire the A-10, and the step of decommissioning the Qiang-5 has actually gone ahead of the United States and Russia. Technically speaking, helicopter gunships and even Chada UAVs have sufficient close-range support capabilities, and it is not surprising that the Su-25 and A-10 have encountered this. But the significance of dropping guided bombs still exists, and the J-7A currently has no successor, and the J-16 must be ready for an official succession.
▲H-6K has taken the lead in entering a new field
The J-7B scheme has not been recognized by the Air Force, and the upgrade speed of the active J-7A is not fast, coupled with the J-7E that appeared on the stand, the attitude of the Navy and Air Force towards this fighter-bomber is self-evident. Although the J-16 is a two-seat multi-role fighter, the positioning is similar to that of the American-made F-15EX, but in fact, it has been focusing on air combat for so many years, which is also in line with the consistent needs of the domestic air force. However, in the case that the J-7A is no longer out of fashion, the J-16 is the only choice for the Air Force in the future, although the cost is quite high. At that time, the long-awaited "H-20" should also be launched, and the three-level air strike system will be reorganized again, but the thinking and level will far exceed the current level.