China’s building a sixth-generation “integrated air-space fighter” that will supposedly outstrip anything the Americans and their allies have in their arsenals. At least that’s what the mock-up of China’s “White Emperor,” or, Baidi, plane. 

This shocking development is like a shot of adrenaline in the rear end of the Pentagon’s increasingly bloated budget. That’s because America’s sixth-generation warplane program, the “Next-Generation Air Dominance” (NGAD) platform, is facing serious budget cuts. By pointing to the claims that China is about to outpace the Americans with their supposed sixth-generation warplane, the Pentagon will now be able to clamor up to Capitol Hill and beg for an increase in funding lest they suddenly fall behind China in this key area.

One Problem with China’s Claims on White Emperor 

But there’s a simple problem with all these claims. China has yet to prove they’ve got a working prototype of their sixth-generation plane. What was revealed was a futuristic-looking mock-up at the Zhuhai Air Show in Guangdong, China last week. We know only what the Chinese government has leaked out to the press, which means that the Chinese sixth-generation bird could be more advanced than what they’ve shown or, more probably, less advanced.

That’s not because China is utterly incapable of building dynamic and advanced warplanes. They are. In fact, in several key technological domains, the Chinese have not only caught up to the Americans, but they have surpassed them as well. Despite their clear advancements, even those unrecognized by the Americans and their allies, though, they are still human. Their threat is great. 

But they are not invincible. 

The fact of the matter is that the Chinese are going to face the same problems in terms of technological feasibility that the Americans, British, and Europeans are facing with their sixth-generation warplane programs. Sixth-generation warplanes combine the most advanced materials, and complex technologies, notably artificial intelligence, AI, and drones, as well as a whole suite of other capabilities that could theoretically be combined into the world’s most lethal “system of systems.”

Sixth-Generation Planes are Giant Boondoggles, and That’s the Point

For the foreseeable future, however, this is going to be an interminable boondoggle. Making all these systems work in a consolidated program will be an onerously expensive program that will take time to produce. It will likely take so much time, and be so expensive, even for the Chinese, who possess decisive advantages with their defense industrial base, that any sixth-generation warplane would likely be a wasting asset as opposed to an advantage for whatever military develops it. 

As for the specifications of this bird, the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) has, “increased the size of the internal weapons bay to hold heavier air-to-ground munitions.” 

Further, AVIC claims its new starfighter, because this bird can fight in both the air and space, which is enough to make one grimace at the absurdity of it all, has an entirely new avionics package that improves, “cockpit design and streamlining maintenance processes.” The mockup of the “White Emperor” has a duck-billed nose and canted vertical stabilizers. 

It’s an impressive-looking mockup. 

Then again, the Americans built an impressive mockup of the SR-72 “Darkstar” for the filmmakers of Top Gun 2: Maverick, so much so that the Chinese re-tasked a satellite to monitor a mockup that had been staged at a U.S. military test facility for filming, not realizing that it was for a Tom Cruise movie. 

China is Trying to Soviet Union the United States 

The United States today has a $32 trillion debt. That debt crisis is compounding with each passing day. The national debt outstrips even the total size of the U.S. economy significantly and defense spending is a key driver of this debt. 

China very badly wants the Americans to spend themselves into oblivion the same way that the Soviet Union immolated itself due to overspending long before the threat of actual warfare between the United States and USSR ever came to pass, where the Soviets might have defeated the Americans.

Today, the Americans are sadly playing the role of the old Soviet Union in a new conflict with the rising superpower of China. At least that’s what Beijing thinks. Under these conditions, Beijing might be hoping to trick the Americans into replicating the same failed strategies of overspending on impossible defense projects that previously brought the economically failing Soviet Union.

America should never underestimate the dynamic People’s Republic of China. At the same time, Washington must avoid the threat of inflation, especially when it comes to science fiction-sounding projects, such as the “White Emperor” sixth-generation warplane. 

About the Author

Brandon J. Weichert, a National Interest national security analyst, is a former Congressional staffer and geopolitical analyst who is a contributor at The Washington Times, the Asia Times, and The-Pipeline. He is the author of Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His next book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine, is available for purchase wherever books are sold. Weichert can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.

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