BEIJING, Sept. 19 -- One Y-20 transport aircraft of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) made its debut at the Africa Aerospace and Defense (AAD) 2024 held in Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa, on September 18 local time. During its debut in South Africa, the Y-20 transport aircraft presented static and dynamic displays at the exhibition.
The Y-20 needs to complete five flight maneuvers in over ten minutes for the exhibition. "To present the best performance, we have designed the maneuvers based on the airspace characteristics of the local airfield and the specified performance time, seeking to demonstrate the superb flight performance of the Y-20 as well as the excellent tactical skills of the PLAAF pilots," said Liang Yao, commander of the mission.
In recent years, the Y-20s have been regularly conducting various overseas missions, including presenting a static display at the Airpower22 exhibition in Austria in 2022, undertaking a humanitarian relief mission in Tonga in 2022, and flying over the pyramids in formation together with six J-10 aerobatic aircraft of the PLAAF Bayi Aerobatic Team and making its premiere performance abroad at El Alamein International Airport in Egypt in 2024.
