China shows off on first day of Singapore Air Show

SINGAPORE AIRSHOW — The first day of the Singapore air show was marked by an impressive showing from China, including the first appearance at a non Chinese air show of the Z-10ME attack helicopter.

China’s presence, which in addition to the heavily armed rotorcraft involved a fly-by from their new domestic commercial plane and plenty of exhibition space, is a sharp contrast to two years ago, when China had just a small display inside the show with a handful of models and only a small number of officials on hand.

The presence of the Z-10ME served to undergird the message the Chinese are expected to be carrying around the show: Beijing can provide capable systems at a cheaper price than their American counterparts. The helicopter looks similar to the US Apache, and was displayed with rocket launchers, GR5 guided rockets and air-to-air missiles.

The US, of course, also is here in force, with a delegation headed by Andrew Hunter, assistant Air Force Secretary for acquisition, who is slated to speak with media on Wednesday. The new head of the US Pacific Air Forces, Gen. Kevin Schneider was spotted outside the Defense Security Cooperation Agency’s booth here, but is not expected to give interviews.

Breaking Defense spoke with two allied military officers and several US defense industry officials who expressed concern that the US delegation was not taking a higher profile at Asia’s biggest airshow at a time when China is pushing hard across the South China Sea and beefing up its presence here at the show. Several noted that Hunter was a relatively low-level official to be leading the US delegation’s presence, for a show where US air chiefs have previously led the party.

One allied officer said on background, as he was not authorized to speak with the press, expressed concern that China’s aggressive outreach at the show since the US was not taking a higher profile with interviews, though he did express satisfaction at the planned fly by from the venerable B-52 bomber.

The giant plane’s presence here is clearly designed to send a message to both allies and to China about the US military commitment to the region, since B-52s are not for sale.

The Chinese COMAC C919 performed a fly-past, the first time the commercial plane has flown outside of China. In addition,  Singapore flew an F-15SG fighter and an AH-64D Apache helicopter; India’s Sarang helicopter team performed impressive aerial acrobatics; and South Korea’s Black Eagles finished off the show in their T-50Bs. Flying teams from Indonesia and Australia also took to the sky for acrobatics.

The show is packed with trade visitors and military officers, returning to its full vigor since the abbreviated version held two years ago while COVID restrictions were still in force. More than 1,000 exhibitors are here, according to show organizers, and some 50,000 people are expected to visit through the week-long show, open to the public for the first time since 2020.