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https://scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/1859958/military-mission-wings-chinese-civilian-aircraft Diplomacy
Plan in the wings to convert Chinese passenger jets for military missions, analysts say
General's trip to an aviation expo bolsters speculation that passenger planes may be refitted to help the military extend its reach
General Zhang Youxia visits Comac's stand at the aviation expo in Beijing. Photo: Sijia Jiang
The People's Liberation Army is likely to convert Chinese-made and designed passenger jets for military roles in a push to expand the armed forces' reach, observers said after a senior officer visited an aviation expo last week.
The trip by General Zhang Youxia , one of 10 military leaders on the Central Military Commission, to the biannual Beijing Aviation Expo on Thursday suggested that China could be following the US lead in converting civilian equipment for military use, the observers said.
Zhang, who also heads the People's Liberation Army's General Armament Department, spent more than an hour listening to product introductions by makers of passenger jets and engines from China, Russia, the US and France, among other countries, as well as Chinese drone makers. He also asked about the details of the home-grown ARJ21 regional jet and the C919 narrow-body jet, both developed by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac).
The C919 is the largest aircraft designed and built in China since the defunct Shanghai Y-10 military transport plane, which was scrapped in 1986 amid financial and technical problems.
Passenger jets have a much longer flying range, more space and a greater take-off weight than China's military aircraft.
The 168-seat C919 was dubbed China's answer to Boeing's 737 and Airbus' A320, which could all be converted into an airborne command post, an electronic attack and intelligence platform, an aerial early warning and control system, and for anti-submarine warfare roles.
"Zhang's visit to the C919 and ARJ21 supported some early speculation that the PLA Air Force is going to follow the US and convert passenger jets into platforms for early-warning systems and other surveillance [roles]," Macau-based military observer Antony Wong Dong said.
"The C919's technology is much more mature and fuel-efficient than the [Xian] Y-20 military carrier under development. I believe that in the next decade, the C919 and ARJ21 will become the main platforms for the air force's airborne warning system and other special military flying teams."
Wong said ARJ21s could be converted into anti-submarine aircraft as soon as China developed a reliable alternative to its existing American engine.
The US Navy has used many repurposed Boeing commercial jets for various military roles, with the Boeing-737 providing the framework for its latest Boeing P-8 Poseidon military aircraft.
The Y-20 carrier, which reportedly has a long-range strike system that can target any point in the Western Pacific, is China's first jet-powered stealth aircraft developed by Xian Aircraft Industrial Corporation, an offshoot of Aviation Industry Corporation of China. But reports indicate the Y-20 is still waiting for an improvement on its WS-20 engine, and the C919 is using more reliable engines and avionics supplied by Irish-American GE Capital Aviation Services.
The development of the C919 and Y-20 are part of the PLA's mission to become a real blue-water power.
That mission also apparently includes the construction of four airstrips with runways up to 3,300 metres long in the South China Sea - one on Woody Island, and one each on Fiery Cross, Subi and Mischief reefs. All kinds of civilian and military aircraft can take off and land on runways of those lengths.
Hong Kong-based military expert Liang Guoliang said the construction of the four airstrips suggested the PLA would need more long-range aircraft for logistics for naval and air forces stationed in the waters.
"The South China Sea is vast, and the environment is extreme due to the humidity and salt water," Liang said.
"Aircraft engines would have to be more reliable and their flying range much greater than that of other military planes."
The C919 is scheduled to complete assembly this year and make its maiden flight next year.