According to unconfirmed government reports, India is planning to lease six Tu-160 long-range bombers (also known as strategic bombers) from Russia, which are among the most formidable military aircraft ever created.
The Tu-160, known as the ‘White Swan’ in the Russian Air Force and dubbed ‘Blackjack’ by NATO, is a four-engined bomber capable of an operational range of 12,000 kilometres and carrying an operational load of up to 40 tonnes, conventional or nuclear.
India’s arsenal is devoid of strategic bombers. In comparison, the Chinese Air Force flies the Xian HS-6K, while the H-20 stealth bomber is ready for takeoff. The H-20 can transport conventional, nuclear-tipped, or hypersonic cruise missiles.
If you’re asking why India is looking for a strategic bomber, the obvious answer is China.
With the global security situation in flux, Asia, with an assertive and hegemonic China on the rise and its hostile relationship with the United States on Taiwan, could be on the edge of a catastrophic confrontation in the near future.
India already has a strained relationship with China, and the latter’s relentless militarization of Tibet and the Ladakh region could lead to unanticipated consequences. India is buying the bomber to beef up its nuclear arsenal as a deterrence to any aggressive plans China may have.
Aside from China, the only other countries with strategic bombers are the United States and Russia. The United States Air Force has strategic bombers B-1, B-2, and B-52, while Russia operates the Tu-160, Tu-22M3M, and Tu-95MS, as well as a stealth bomber dubbed PAK DA.
Western allies of the United States do not have strategic bombers of their own, but have offered bases from which the US strategic bombers can operate.
With a strategic bomber like the Tu-160, India will be able to carry nuclear missiles deep into China’s heartland.
There are differing opinions on whether India requires a strategic bomber like the Tu-160. According to some commentators, the Russian bomber will provide India with a true strategic advantage, allowing it to strike deep into enemy territory and degrade the enemy’s military and industrial assets.
The other point is that the aircraft is a Cold Battle relic that, because to its ponderous weight and high radar signal, does not fit into modern-day war scenarios. Russia, the former Soviet Union’s successor state, has 36 TU bombers in its arsenal.
