Chinese Stealth Bomber H-20 Art, Hinting Reveal or Unoriginality

The Chinese semi official magazine 'Aerospace Knowledge' ran a piece on the new Chinese bomber, the H-20. The weird thing is the bomber concept shown isn't new. In fact, it's been running around the web for some time:



(source: china-defense.blogspot.com...)

That's the same thing as what has been running around being called the H-18 Divine Hawk:

www.cgtrader.com...

The really weird bit is that the model, whether you call it an H-18 or H-20, is really a FB-23 with the McDAC-led JSF wings attached:

FB-23:



McDAC/BAe/NG JSF:



With that in mind, I am leaning towards this is just some sort of artist doodle that has gotten out of hand. After all the old art for the J-XX was rather different from the J-20. Also, the proposed CopyWidow would have far too small a payload, if I am not mistaken.

It look like they fall the subsonic wing design for a stealth supersonic F-111 like . May be a different way than the USAF.

a reply to: anzha

definitely looks like someone got their hands on the black widow bomber variant plans

a reply to: penroc3

I was gonna say they must of gotten their way onto Northrop servers and stole some plans.

Looks like a YF-23 that got made into a fighter/bomber.

a reply to: grey580

MAYBE.

This could just be some artist's idea.

Or they might have taken their own path and ended up at a similar place.

I suspect the former, but the scale isn't shown (no banana), so we can't really say much other than its a pretty picture with some potentially interesting lineage.

a reply to: anzha

Boscombe down?? To hide those bomb bay doors,if I'm reaching.

Definitely a cool picture

I am not sure what to think of it. A supersonic tactical bomber?

It seems inspired by the FB-23. But you don't need access to Northrop servers for that. They might have started with the general FB-23 layout and adapted it for their needs.

I've seen other claims online that H-20 would be a long-range strategic bomber and probably a flying wing.

Why is it that so many people say that the f35 and f22 stealth aircraft have no chance on the modern battlefield yet so many other countries are developing their own stealth aircraft?

Either way the art concept is cool.

a reply to: grey580


Pweddy pictures. Could it be that our defense contractors threw some "old" tech out there as highly classified, (to be hacked,) and the Chinese took the bait?

a reply to: moebius

The H-20 *IS* supposed to be a long range bomber. Most sources hint at a flying wing. This publication gets the official blessing of the Chinese gov, so either this is something else or they said 'eh, go for whatever. we're not ready to show.'

Or the H-20 won't be a strategic bomber. idk. I'd lean to the middle interpretation.

a reply to: anzha

Popular Sci commissioned a speculative art piece based on what's in the Chinese media:



www.popsci.com...

a reply to: anzha

Stable? What's that? Those huge wingtips will make things fun in certain regimes of flight.

a reply to: Zaphod58

I attribute that to an artist not really knowing what he's doing. It looks like a modified B-2. Like someone dropped it into photoshop and modded it...

a reply to: anzha

I certainly hope so. If they tried to do them like that on the actual bomber, it would be.....interesting.

a reply to: Zaphod58

There have been a few odd concepts (and images) from China as to what the H-20 will look like. Most are flying wings...of varying oddity.







But not always:

a reply to: anzha

The last one is the only one that I'd want to fly. Heh. The others would be one of those "Well this is fun" types.

It would seem that the Chinese are trolling (or channeling) Northrop.

Assuming this is NOT a troll, it would appear to confirm the H-20 is a flying wing.

www.thedrive.com...

I think China has been watching Broken Arrow too many times...
Broken Arrow B3

originally posted by: anzha

It would seem that the Chinese are trolling (or channeling) Northrop.

Assuming this is NOT a troll, it would appear to confirm the H-20 is a flying wing.

www.thedrive.com...

When I first saw that I my first impression was that it was the B-21.

I wonder if that is a jab at the contractors that worked on the raider, basically saying we stoleyour commercial and your tech.

Other then the stolen commercial all the other ones look like half baked ideas. I guess the one that is black and has the shock diamonds looks at least flyable, but hardly stealthy.

Either way it will be interesting to see what they Chinese can come up with, and how much they 'borrowed'