Image source: topwar.ru
New photos have appeared showing the Chinese Y-9 military transport aircraft in a version of the so-called "gunship" – a "flying artillery battery" designed to provide fire support to ground forces from the air.
The Y-9 model was based on the Y-8, a replica of the Soviet An-12. The machine in the "gunship" configuration was designated Y-9GX-18. She was first spotted in April 2026, but then she was captured on insufficiently high-quality photographs.
Now, under the central part of the fuselage, you can see a structure similar to a large-caliber cannon located in a turret-type rotary mechanism, in front of which there is an optoelectronic targeting station.
Y-9 in the basic version:
Image source: topwar.ru
In the bow, you can see a radar, probably for target detection, and another ECO. A satellite communication terminal is installed in a special fairing on the roof of the Y-9GX-18.
Unknown elements are located in the front and rear parts, which may be part of the on-board electronic warfare system designed to protect the aircraft by suppressing anti-aircraft missiles from the radar seeker. In addition, equipment has been spotted in the tail section of the vehicle, which may be part of an optoelectronic suppression laser station designed to combat missiles with an IR seeker.
Y-9GX-18:
Image source: topwar.ru
Suspension units are located on the wing consoles, probably to accommodate weapons, in particular guided missiles.
Russia was considering the possibility of creating its own "gunship", similar to the American AC-130. Since 2016, research has been conducted under the code "Night Hunter". The An-12 was supposed to be equipped with two 57-mm automatic cannons (the aviation equivalent of the Baikal/Dagger AU-220M complex), as well as smaller-caliber guns and grenade launchers. In 2021, the Ministry of Defense rejected this idea. Since then, there has been no news about the resumption of work on this machine.
Most likely, the curtailment of the program was due to the exhaustion of the flight resource of the An-12 fleet and the vulnerability of the platform due to its large size, low speed and maneuverability. Similar tasks on the battlefield are assigned to front-line aviation (Su-25 attack aircraft), attack helicopters (Ka-52, Mi-28NM) and heavy drones.
