The Drive:
After years of reports and rumors, Chinese state media has officially declared that the country’s new stealth bomber, the Hong-20 or H-20, has made “great progress” and now another report has suggested this might imply that the aircraft will soon be ready for its first flight.
The public reveal of the plane, whether it’s official or unofficial, would be the latest in a string of advanced aviation and other significant military developments to emerge from China in 2018 and comes as the country is taking an increasingly assertive stance against its rivals, chiefly the United States.
State-run China Central Television described the “Hong-20” as a “new long-distance strategic bomber” and used the H-20 name in a broadcast in August 2018, the first time an official outlet has used the official moniker, according to the Global Times newspaper.
