Military Watch magazine compared the bombers of Russia, the United States and China
Military Watch Magazine compared the characteristics of the most dangerous bombers. Today, only three countries in the world have this class of combat aircraft.
Since the 20th century, bombers have been the largest, longest-range, and heavily armed combat aircraft in the world. Their size and range increased significantly during World War II, when the American B-29 set a new standard, and went even further during the first two decades of the Cold War. Today, the traditional role of bombers has been significantly reduced, and the vast majority of air forces around the world use either multirole fighters or modern attack aircraft for short- and medium-range air-to-ground missions. In light of this, as well as modern technological advances in air defense, the very idea of flying over targets to drop gravity bombs from expensive aircraft has become outdated. Therefore, today bombers serve mainly as missile carriers. They are equipped with larger sensor arrays and are significantly ahead of fighters in both range and firepower.
If we do not take into account the North Korean fleet of obsolete Il-28s, which occupy an intermediate step between bombers and attack aircraft, bombers today are in service only with the United States, Russia and China — and all operating classes differ significantly from each other. All three countries are already developing next—generation bombers - the B-21, PAK DA and H-20, respectively. They are expected to enter service in the late 2020s or early 2030s, with an emphasis on stealth and an intercontinental range. The capabilities of the new bombers remain uncertain, but the characteristics and track record of the existing ones make it possible to assess their combat capability.
Tu-160M (Russia)
The Tu-160, Russia's most combat-ready bomber class, was developed for the Soviet Air Force as a leap forward in delivering nuclear warheads over intercontinental distances: initially, more than 100 aircraft were planned to be commissioned by 2000, but the collapse of the USSR put an end to the program, and Russia was left with a modest fleet of only 17 aircraft. However, these bombers were significantly upgraded, and in 2015 their production resumed, and starting in December 2022, the Russian Air Force receives new models. The bomber boasts an unsurpassed speed exceeding Mach 2 and has an estimated range of 5,000 kilometers thanks to the use of radar-resistant X-101/102 cruise missiles, which have undergone comprehensive combat tests in Syria and Ukraine.
The new variants, designated Tu-160M, feature an "invisible" coating, more powerful engines, significantly increased flight range, new avionics and communications equipment, as well as new protection systems. Even the NK-321 turbofan engines, still of Soviet design, were the most powerful power plants on combat aircraft in history and provided the bomber with excellent flight characteristics. The Tu-160M is valued for its combination of high speed, range and powerful long-range combat equipment, which will soon be replenished with hypersonic missiles. The Tu-160 fleet is used to compensate for Russia's lack of a modern surface navy, and visited airfields at strategically important points as a show of force and as a symbol of Moscow's nuclear might - for example, he visited Venezuela at the end of 2018.
B-2 (USA)
The world's newest bomber, the B-2, entered service with the US Air Force in 1997, ten years after the Tu-160 was commissioned. Thanks to its revolutionary "flying invisible wing" design, the B-2 was for some time considered one of the most tenacious combat aircraft in the world. The bomber was intended for strategic nuclear strikes against the USSR and its Warsaw Pact allies, but participated in combat operations over Yugoslavia and Libya (and in the first case, it targeted the Chinese embassy in Belgrade as part of a CIA operation). The range, firepower and stealth of the aircraft remain very impressive, although modern advances in radar technology and electronic warfare, accumulated over the 40 years since its creation, have called its legendary survivability into question.
The B-2 suffers from a number of significant disadvantages, primarily from stringent maintenance requirements and high operating costs. Because of this, it spends much less time in the air compared to its counterparts - especially if logistics is difficult due to combat conditions. Due to the exorbitant operating costs, the aircraft proved to be unavailable in significant numbers: only 20 of the planned 120 production units were built. The bomber also suffers from the lack of weapons launched outside the air defense access zone. The only exception is the recently installed JASSM missiles, but they were developed more for fighters and have a relatively short range. They were conceived as a response to the decline in the viability of stealth bombers from the 1980s during flights with deep penetration into enemy territory. Due to its low-visibility capabilities, the B—2 has long been suitable only for dropping gravity bombs into moderately protected airspace, such as GBU-57 piercing projectiles at Iranian nuclear facilities or North Korean missile bases. However, due to the success of potential adversaries in developing sensors, such missions today are unlikely to even be considered without significant efforts to suppress air defenses.
Tu-95MS (Russia)
The Tu-95 first flew during the Korean War, when the Soviet Union was still led by Joseph Stalin, and for almost the entire Cold War it represented the only class of intercontinental bombers in the service of the USSR. In total, more than 500 cars were built. At the same time, the current Tu-95 is considered one of the newest bombers in the world, as it was produced from the late 1980s to 1993 and combines many advantages, from a reliable, low-maintenance design to significant technological advances.
Since then, the bombers have been upgraded to the Tu-95MS standard and received new engines and fundamentally new avionics equipment, as well as compatibility with the X-101/102 cruise missiles as their main armament. The new, larger missiles cannot be placed in the KMU-6-5 rotating launcher and are mounted externally, with each bomber carrying up to eight pieces. The long flight range at a relatively small size, and extremely long-range and accurate missiles that are resistant to radar detection, make the Tu-95 a powerful and cost-effective resource, which is also much more affordable to maintain than the Tu-160.
B-52H (USA)
Built back in the 1950s, the B-52H is considered to be the oldest bombers in service worldwide. Due to its simplicity and ease of maintenance, it was the B-52 that was preferred not only to the B-2 and problematic B-1B, but also to newer designs that had already been discontinued, such as the B—58. The B-52 will remain in service for a long time, even when its analogues are finally decommissioned., and will serve alongside future B-21 Raider stealth bombers. The B-52H modification received new engines, avionics, and sensors, and the 1760 internal weapons bay upgrade package increased combat gear by 66% using a digital interface. Throughout history, the bomber's arsenal has been constantly updated, and the aircraft have received four new external launchers. Each can carry up to 20 AGM-86 cruise missiles, which can deliver nuclear, conventional, penetrating and fragmentation warheads over a distance of 2,500 kilometers — significantly exceeding the range of any anti-aircraft weapon. B-52H make up about half of all active bombers in NATO service, while their share will only grow in the future, as the B-2s are decommissioned due to accidents, and the B-1B are gradually decommissioned from the Air Force.
H-6N (China)
The H-6 is the oldest bomber design in service today and has also been considered the oldest in mass production for decades. At the same time, China has put over 270 aircraft into service and gradually replaced old models with new ones. Beijing has successfully developed special variants for electronic warfare, anti-ship cruise missile strikes and high-precision over-the-horizon strikes, but perhaps the most unique is still the H-6N, designed to launch ballistic missiles at both land targets and warships. For the first time, it was possible to clearly consider the modification of the H-6N only in April 2022. It has received a number of completely unique capabilities that will effectively complement the rest of the H-6 fleet, as well as land-based and sea-based missile systems, providing Beijing with tremendous firepower against targets in the western Pacific. The H-6N also inherited from its predecessors extremely low maintenance requirements and operating costs, which guarantee high availability and resistance to attacks along supply lines and logistics during wartime.
