[Salon] PLA researchers rank Cold War relic B-52 a bigger nuclear threat than F-35, B-2

[Chas Freeman <cwfresidence@gmail.com>]

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3310877/pla-researchers-rank-cold-war-relic-b-52-bigger-nuclear-threat-f-35-b-2?module=top_story&pgtype=homepage

PLA researchers rank Cold War relic B-52 a bigger nuclear threat than F-35, B-2

21 May 2025

A Chinese military study puts the 70-year-old bomber ahead of sleek, modern aircraft in risk assessment based on limited strike

A threat assessment by a Chinese research team into the US military’s capability of launching a tactical nuclear air strike on China has come up with some unexpected findings.

According to the researchers, led by Wang Bingqie from the PLA Air Force Early Warning Academy in Wuhan, the 70-year-old B-52 Stratofortress bomber, a relic of the Cold War, emerged as the top threat across all combat phases – deployment, penetration, and strike.

The results of the study, which simulated a US Air Force penetrating counterair (PCA) operation on Chinese naval fleets or inland targets, were published on Friday in China’s leading security journal Modern Defence Technology.

The PCA strategy is based on advanced platforms like F-35A stealth fighters and B-2 Spirit bombers – both capable of carrying nuclear weapons – and drones collaborating in a networked system-of-systems attack.

The paper noted that the US B61-12 air-launched tactical thermonuclear bombs, each equivalent to 300 tonnes of TNT, were “primarily meant for deterrence but could be used to cripple core A2/AD (anti-access/area denial) facilities and critical nodes if necessary”.

“These nuclear-armed platforms enhance lethality through blast waves, radiation penetration, and radioactive contamination, significantly amplifying their destructive power beyond conventional fragmentation and penetration effects,” it said.