The Perfect Soldier: Special Operations, Commandos, and the Future of Us Warfare by James F. Dunnigan
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Dirty Little Secrets
Chinas F-15E
by James Dunnigan
February 12, 2007
Discussion Board on this DLS topic
The Chinese Navy has worked most of the bugs out of its locally designed and manufactured light bomber. The JH-7 serves the same purpose as the American F-15E or the Russian Su-24. The JH-7 is a 27 ton, twin engine aircraft, with a 40 foot wingspan. However, it is underpowered, and only has a five ton bomb load. The navy would use it mainly for carrying anti-ship missiles. The aircraft has an operational radius of about 900 kilometers, enabling it to contribute to an attack on Taiwan, or a blockade of the islands ports.
The JH7 entered service a decade ago, and about a hundred (four regiments) of them are available. Mass production was delayed because the aircraft was designed to use a British engine. China thought it could reverse-engineer this engine, but was unable to do so, and had to arrange for a manufacturing license. The Chinese air force has expressed some interest in the aircraft, especially now that the Chinese are making smart bombs.
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