Pictures of a new Chinese military transport plane surfaced on Dec 24, dubbed the Y-20 is expected to be the strategic transport plane ...
The aircraft is being developed by the Chinese aircraft maker Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation.
The aircraft design has been influenced by the Russian IL-76 and U.S Boeing C-17 transport planes.
Y-20 is large wide-body, four-turbofan engine-powered, high-wing and high T-tail configured military transport.
Nose section seems to be being inspired from the Antonov An-70 transport plane.
The Y-20 uses a wing-fuselage interface similar to that used by the Il-76, producing a pronounced hump atop the forward fuselage, while its wide body, empennage, and T-tail are similar to the C-17.
Prototype aircraft is powered by a Russian Saturn D-30K series turbofan engine and the production models would debut a Chinese indigenous engines.
Chinese Ministry of Defense spokesman Yang Yujun said that China is developing a Y-20 large transport aircraft as part of its military modernization drive. The spokesman added that the advanced long-range aircraft is being developed to be used in disaster relief work and humanitarian emergency situations. He did not say when the Y-20s would be ready for service, but offered that "the research and development of the large transport aircraft is going forward as planned".
In 2008 a former chinese born Boeing engineer was caught for allegedly selling secrets about the Boeing C-17 strategic transport plane and now retired U.S space shuttles.
