H-8
There is very little open information on efforts to develop a successor to the H-6. China began work on a new generation long-range bomber in the early 1970s. This initial effort reportedly featured four Rolls-Royce Spey turbofans under the wings, and a fuselage generally resembling an enlarged H-6/Tu-16 Badger. The resulting bomber was said to be comparable in general performance to the American B-47. This performance was evidently unattractive, and the Chinese government cancelled the program before it moved out of the concept stage. Internet sources have offered pictures of what is referred to as the H-8.
In the late 1970s further efforts were made to radically modify the H-6 bomber, replacing the two large turbojets with four fuel-efficient Rolls-Royce Spey Mk-512 turbofans originally used on the Trident 2E civil aircraft. The Trident was one of the first jet-powered civilian transports acquired by the PLAAF. The order included an agreement to produce the Spey engines under license, and these license-produced engines were subsequently used on the JH-7 military aircraft. The resulting H-6I made its first flight in 1978, though no photographs of this aircraft have emerged. Plans to modify the entire H-6 fleet were not implemented.
