Xian H-6

Xian H-6
Xian H-6M
Type:	Strategic bomber
Design country:	People's Republic of China
Manufacturer:	Xi'an Aircraft
First flight:	September 1959
Commissioning:	1969
Production time:	In series production since 1968
Number of pieces:	162-180

The Xian H-6 (轰 -6; Hōng-6) is a version of the Soviet Tu-16 bomber built under license in China .

In 1959 the first two Tu-16 machines were delivered in the form of kits to China, where they were assembled in Harbin and flown for the first time in September 1959. After the deterioration in relations between China and the Soviet Union , license production by the Xian Aircraft Company made slow progress, the H-6A only took off on its maiden flight on December 24, 1968 . A year later, serial production of this first version (modified compared to the Tu-16) began, with at least 120 machines being built.

variants

• Xian H-6: Tupolev Tu-16 kits. One of the two machines dropped China's first atomic bomb on Lop Nor on May 14, 1965 .
• Xian H-6A: Bomber with atomic bombs
• Xian H-6C: improved H-6A with improved ECM equipment
• Xian H-6D (H-6-IV): bomber with anti-ship missiles armed with two anti-ship missiles YJ-6 (C-601 / CAS-1 Kraken) - air-launched version of the Silkworm missile, later replaced by supersonic missiles (two C-301 or four C-101 ). An improved variant that will carry four YJ-8 ( C-801 ) missiles is currently under development.
• Xian H-6E: Strategic nuclear bomb introduced in the 1980s.
• Xian H-6F: improved version (conversion) of the H-6A and H-6C from the 1990s. New navigation system, GPS and Doppler radar.
• Xian H-6H: Missile carrier version, developed in the late 1990s, armed with two KD-63 cruise missiles. First successful test in 2002, in use since 2004/2005.
• Xian H-6DU: Tanker converted from H-6D.
• Xian H-6M: Missile carrier version without internal bomb bay (to save 400 kg in weight) for the use of up to four anti-ship cruise missiles YJ-83 (C-802) or the air-supported variant of the YJ-62 - (C-602) - Long-range anti-ship cruise missile (with all-terrain flight radar at low altitude). In production since 2006.
• Xian HY-6: The variant known as Hongzhaji You (aerial refueling aircraft) is equipped with two removable refueling winches at underwing stations. If necessary, these can be dismantled and cruise missiles can be carried and launched.
• Xian HY-6U: pure air tanker version without rear armament and target radar
• Xian HY-6D: modernized air tanker variant, based on the H-6D, in which the glass canopy has been replaced by a radar cone like the H-6K. Thanks to the retention of the rear cockpit and weapon systems, it can be quickly reconfigured as a bomber.
• Xian HY-6DU: pure air tanker variant, based on the HY-6D, in which the rear armament and the target radar were omitted
• Xian H-6 Testbed: engine test vehicle

H-6K

H-6K (2015)

• Xian H-6K: extensively modernized variant as a strategic bomber from 2009. The fuselage was made of composite material instead of aluminum and the glazed navigator's cockpit in the bow was replaced by a powerful radar for navigation / terrain tracking radar / fire control; Added to this were ejection seats for the four crew members, enlarged air inlets for the more powerful Saturn D-30KP-2 engines; the rear cannons were omitted and replaced by electronic countermeasures systems; Furthermore, replacement of the avionics with a modern glass cockpit , Forward Looking Infrared , elimination of the bomb bay through the installation of a large fuel tank and expansion of the external load stations to six pieces (for 1 DongHai 10 cruise missiles each ). For the first time ever, China has a bomber that could effectively attack US bases across East Asia (including Guam ).

Armament

Pipe armament for self-defense

Depending on the version, the H-6 is armed, like the Tu-16, with up to seven 23 mm Afanasjew-Makarow AM-23 automatic cannons. Two of them are located in a stern mount in the stern and in the two flattened remote-controlled weapon turrets on the fuselage behind the cockpit and under the fuselage in front of the tail skid. These automatic cannons can either be guided by the radar on the tail stand or manually by the shooters. The gunner for the lower turret has two observation domes on the side of the fuselage. The gunner for the upper turret sits against the direction of flight behind the pilot and can see his firing range through an observation dome in front of the turret. In some Badger versions, a seventh on-board cannon is installed rigidly in the direction of flight on the right side of the bow pulpit and is operated by the pilot.

• 1 × 23-mm automatic cannon Afanasjew-Makarow AM-23 with 200 rounds of ammunition
• 1 × twin mount in rotating dome turret 9-A-036 each with 2 × 23-mm machine cannons Afanasjew-Makarow AM-23 with 225 rounds of ammunition each in the rear stand. The control was carried out by the rear gunner from his pressure cabin using the "Bee Hind" fire control radar.
• 2 × twin mounts in rotating weapon turrets, each with 2 × 23-mm automatic cannons-Afanasjew-Makarow AM-23 with 200 rounds of ammunition each under and over the hull

Air-to-surface guided missile

• 2 × Hongdu C-101 (FL-2 or HY-3) anti-ship missiles

Length: 5.8 m, diameter:? m, wingspan: 1.2 m, takeoff mass: 1850 kg (300 kg warhead), speed: Mach 2, altitude: 5–50 m, range: 45 km, controls: inertial navigation + final approach radar

• 2 × Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation C-301 (HY-3) anti-ship missile

Length: 9.85 m, diameter: 0.76 m, wingspan: 2.24 m, launch mass: 3400 kg (300–500 kg warhead), speed:> Mach 2, altitude: 50 m, range: 130 km, control : Inertial Navigation + Final Approach Radar

• 2 × C-601 (CAS-1 "Kraken" / YJ-6 / SS-N-2 Styx) - anti-ship missiles

Length: 7.1 m, diameter: 0.76 m, wingspan: 2.4 m, takeoff mass: 2440 kg (513 kg warhead), speed: 0.9 Mach, altitude: 50-200 m, range: 95 km, Controls: inertial navigation + final approach radar

• 2 × C-611 "Kraken" / YJ-61 ( anti-ship missile only H-6D)

Length: 7.38 m, diameter: 0.76 m, wingspan: 2.4 m, take-off weight: 2440 kg (513 kg warhead), speed: 0.9 Mach, altitude: 50-200 m, range: 180 km, Controls: inertial navigation + final approach radar

• 2 × C-801 / YJ-81 anti-ship missiles

Length: 4.5 m, diameter: 0.36 m, wingspan: 1.18 m, take-off mass: ~ 800 kg (165 kg warhead), speed: 0.9 Mach, altitude: 5–30 m, range: 10– 50 km, control: inertial navigation + final approach radar (improved versions C-801 A with 80 km range)

• 6 × China Haiying Electromechanical Technology Academy KD-88 (KongDi-88) C-802
• 2–7 × DH-10 / CJ-10K "Chang Jian" cruise missiles (H-6M / K only)
• 2 × Casi YJ-62 ( C-602 ) cruise missiles
• 2 × KD-63 (only H-6H) - cruise missiles against ship targets
• 6 × DongHai 10 (CJ-20 / KD-20) - long-range cruise missiles (2000 km range, conventional or nuclear warhead ), can be carried by the H-6K at the six external load stations .

deployment

These aircraft are stationed on the Chinese base of the Wugong Strategic Bomber Command near the city of Xi'an ( Shaanxi Province , China ).

Technical specifications

Parameter	H-6	H-6K
crew	6th	4th
length	34.8 m	34.80 m
span	34.2 m	33 m
height	9.85 m	10.36 m
Wing area	167.55 m²	165 m²
Empty mass	37,900 kg	37,230 kg
Max. Takeoff mass	75,800 kg	79,000 kg
Top speed	1050 km / h
Service ceiling	13,100 m	12,800 m
Range	6000 km
Engines	2 turbojet engines Wopen WP8 with 93 kN thrust each	2 Solowjow D-30 KP2 turbofan engines with 117 kN thrust each
Armament	seven 23 mm cannons (one fixed, two in each rear command post, two barbeds) up to 9000 kg of internal and external charges	6 underwing stations for cruise missiles

Web links

Commons : Xian H-6  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Data sheet at SinoDefence ( Memento from January 25, 2009 in the Internet Archive )

Individual evidence

1. ↑ H-6H Cuirse Missile Bomber PLAAF . In: AirForceWorld.com . Archived from the original on March 3, 2015. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} H-6 K Strategic bomber. www.redstar.gr, accessed on August 27, 2018 .