You're reading: China test flies heavy air force freight plane

BEIJING — China said it successfully tested a heavy air force freighter that could be a mostly home-grown substitute for the older Russian planes it now uses while substantially boosting the Chinese military's global reach.

The
Y-20 flew took off from its development base near the northwestern city
of Xi’an on Saturday, the China Daily and other newspapers reported
Monday. The plane can fly 44,000 kilometers (27,300 miles) with 66 tons
of freight, and is designed to fill the need for a stronger, long-range
heavy lift capacity.

China now uses Russian
IL-76 freighters, including for communications roles, but those planes
were first built in the 1970s and their technology is outdated. The
Y-20, which compares to the U.S. Air Force’s C-17 cargo planes, will use
Russian jet engines until China develops replacements, the reports said.

China
in 2011 sent IL-76 freighters to rescue its citizens trapped by the
fighting in Libya and the introduction of the Y-20 should substantially
increase the military’s ability to deliver soldiers and equipment,
including tanks, for combat missions or disaster relief.

Separately,
the official Xinhua News Agency said China successfully tested an
anti-ballistic missile system Sunday but gave few details. China last
successfully tested the system in 2010.

China has spent lavishly
on its military in recent years as its economy boomed, giving the
country the second-largest official defense budget after the United
States. That has given teeth to Beijing’s ambitions to take a leading
role in the Asian Pacific region and deter Taiwan, the self-governing
island that China claims as its own, from declaring formal independence.

While
China says those arms are purely for defense, its recent aggressive
moves to assert its territorial claims have unnerved Vietnam, the
Philippines and other neighbors and prompted them to boost defense
spending as well.