Chinese Crash Kills Top Engineers
Chinese Crash Kills Top Engineers
Charles R. Smith
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Accident Is Major Blow to Developing New Weapon
China has suffered a major setback in developing an advanced air defense system. The recent crash of a so-called "transport" plane, killing 40, has turned out to be a blow against the Chinese air force (People's Liberation Army Air Force, or PLAAF) ambitions to provide a 21st century force.
The downed aircraft has been identified by several sources as an airborne radar plane carrying Chinese electronics experts. The aircraft slammed into a hillside in central Anhui Province, killing all 35 technicians and the five-member crew.
"I
t is not clear whether the aircraft involved is the KJ-2000, a derivative of the Russian/Israeli A-50/Phalcon AWACS, or a new version of the smaller Xian Y-8 'Balance Beam' AWACS. Scant photo evidence suggests it may be the latter," stated Rick Fisher, vice president of the International Assessment and Strategy Center.
"In either case, this is a setback for PLA's ambition to excel in this critical area of high-tech warfare," noted Fisher.
The aircraft may have been loaded with so many top Chinese technicians because China wanted to avoid having to transmit test performance information to the ground. The U.S. has the capability to intercept Chinese air-to-ground signals and could use the information to determine the capability and weakness of the airborne radar.
Big or Little Loss?
Yet the critical question being circulated inside defense circles is which type of Chinese radar plane was destroyed. The fuzzy photographs released by Beijing suggest it was the smaller and less sophisticated Y-8 turboprop radar aircraft code-named "Balance Beam."
The Y-8 is a Chinese version of the Russian four-engine AN-12 military transport. The aircraft was developed with the assistance of Ukrainian Antonov Design Bureau. The new Y-8 Chinese airborne radar plane includes navigation avionics from U.S. maker Honeywell, four Pratt and Whitney Canada PW150B turboprop engines and British Dodi R-408 six-blade propellers.
"The Y-8 platform is especially noteworthy because it will likely be marketed as an inexpensive alternative to Western and Russian AWACS, and be seen in places like Iran," stated Fisher.
The Y-8 "Balance Beam" is fitted with a linear-shape electronically steered phased-array (ESA) radar. The radar is similar in shape and size to the Swedish Ericsson PS-890 Erieye airborne radar. The radar is to be manufactured by the PLA 38th Institute.
The Y-8 "Balance Beam" will provide the PLAAF with a platform for tactical airborne early warning and electronic intelligence missions. The "Balance Beam" is designed to coordinate Chinese fighters, bombers and strike aircraft via data links in air campaigns against Taiwan, Japan, India or the U.S.
However, the Y-8 crew count does not correspond to the five crew members that Chinese officials say died in the radar plane crash. The Y-8 is manned by only two or three crewmembers. It is also questionable whether the Y-8 could carry onboard radar, test equipment and the additional 35 engineers/passengers.
In fact, the published death count indicates that the crash may have been a larger aircraft such as the extremely expensive – and much more sophisticated – KJ-2000 radar plane. The KJ-2000 radar plane is based on a Russian jet transport, the Il-76. The KJ-2000 reportedly has a five-member crew and has the capability to carry the additional 35 technicians with test equipment.
The KJ-2000 surveillance plane is reportedly fitted with a Chinese-made airborne radar system at Xian Aircraft Industry Co. (XAC). The aircraft made its first flight in November 2003.
Two KJ-2000s, one based on a Russian radar plane purchased by China and one converted from a PLAAF IL-76MD transport have been delivered to the PLAAF for operational evaluation and tests. According to reports from Beijing, a total of four KJ-2000 aircraft will eventually be built.
New Radar or New Weapon?
Another item raising questions inside Western intelligence circles is what the Chinese radar plane was testing when it went down. According to Fisher, the electronics installed on the KJ-2000 and Y-8 "Balance Beam" aircraft can be used for far more than simple tracking.
"Both platforms are testing different types of active phased array radar, which can serve as a highly flexible and difficult-to-jam radar, or if refined via software and more capable transmit-receive modules, can also become a microwave weapon that can directly attack enemy electronics," stated Fisher.
"For example, if they can 'see' an approaching AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missile, the most important U.S.-made air-to-air missile, then it can also likely 'fry' the missile's microchips, rendering it inoperable," stated Fisher.
The U.S. Air Force has already demonstrated the capability of powerful scanned array radar systems. The AESA (Advanced Electronically Scanned Array) radar fitted on the F-22 Raptor demonstrated that it can penetrate the sophisticated electronic guidance systems of a missile in flight and disable it.
Pentagon engineers are testing the radar against a variety of missile threats. The tests have already demonstrated that the AESA radar can burn out or disable missile guidance systems.
The AESA radar has proven to be so adept and powerful that it can overwhelm, jam and even intercept enemy communications. The computer-controlled radar can use the latest information warfare spy algorithms to insert false data or plant a computer virus intended to bug and monitor the enemy communications.
There is evidence that China is trying to develop similar radar-based weapons. According to the 2006 Pentagon report on Chinese military power, PRC officials have publicly indicated their intent to acquire advanced microwave weapons such as the AESA as a means of defeating technologically advanced military forces.
"Chinese writings have suggested that RF (Radio Frequency) weapons could be used against C4ISR, guided missiles, computer networks, electronically-fused mines, aircraft carrier battle groups, and satellites in orbit," states the report.
"Analysis of Chinese technical literature indicates a major effort is underway to develop the technologies required for RF weapons, including high-power radio frequency sources, prime-power generators, and antennas to radiate RF pulses. Chinese scientists are also investigating the effects of RF pulses on electronics and the propagation of these pulses through building walls and through the atmosphere. Furthermore, China appears to be assessing its own vulnerability to RF weapons and exploring ways to 'harden' electronics," notes the Pentagon report.
Most defense analysts agree that the loss of a single experimental radar plane can be seen as only a temporary setback for the Chinese air force. The People's Liberation Army can quickly recover from such a setback.
However, the loss of an advanced microwave weapon, and the expert team of scientists developing it, can be viewed as a crippling blow against the ambitions of Chinese warlords to start and win a war before the end of this decade.
