China is hustling hard to sell its massive Y-20 military transport jet, nicknamed the “Chubby Girl,” to countries across the globe.
They recently showed it off to Nigeria’s Defense Minister as part of an international sales push. The Y-20 is China’s answer to huge strategic airlifters like America’s C-17. Selling them abroad helps China forge military partnerships while showing off its aerospace chops.
The state-owned manufacturer Xian Aircraft Corporation has ramped up Y-20 production big time. They’ve set up assembly lines to crank them out, just like an auto plant.
CCTV ran glowing coverage of how 90% of parts are made digitally – think robotic arms dancing in sync while lasers precision cut. They say this makes the Y-20 the fastest built plane of its kind anywhere.
So far China’s Air Force has snapped up almost 100 of these beasts. At 47 meters long and 50 meters wide, each Y-20 can haul a mind-blowing 66 tonnes of cargo and troops.
In just two years Xian has delivered half of the total Y-20s in service. Now the factory’s prepped to meet international demand on top of domestic orders.
The plane keeps getting upgrades too. New Chinese-made engines replace the original Russian ones, upping power and reliability. There are even specialty versions, like the Y-20U for aerial refueling, or the AEW model stuffed with radars for early warning duties.
The Y-20 has become the backbone of China’s air mobility, able to project serious force. No wonder they’re eager to pitch it to potential buyers seeking heavy lift capabilities.
Exporting the Chubby Girl worldwide lets China strengthen strategic partnerships, especially with nations leery of Western dominance. It also expands their influence as an aerospace powerhouse.
So from cutting-edge manufacturing techniques to military relationships, the Y-20 sales drive ticks a lot of key boxes for China.
