"Deterrence, the Daitōjin Way": War Ministry Unveils P-10 Phantom
For the first time in a generation, the War Ministry revealed a new stealth bomber—a sleek, highly capable weapon the service hopes will be so deadly it would force the governments of foreign adversaries to rethink wars for decades to come. The Air Force unveiled the Zayasu-made P-10 Phantom to the public Wednesday evening in a ceremony at Air Force Plant 16 in Karumai, Nagato, which included top defense officials, Zayasu Heavy Industries executive Haruichi Endō, as well as members of the Diet and other elected officials. Prime Minister Sadazane Konishi was reportedly in attendance, although he did not speak at the event. Instead, alongside the CEO of Zayasu Heavy Industries, the Vice Chief of Staff of the Imperial Armed Forces, General Chūichi Suzuki, and the Minister of War, Marshal Okimoto Esashi, spoke, with both touching on the name of the aircraft, which honors the personnel of the 29th Sentai, "Azumaya's Phantoms" as they were known during the Great War.
"The audacity of Azumaya's Phantoms has inspired generations of Daitōjin aviators," War Minister Esashi said as the aircraft loomed large behind him.
"I believe it fitting, therefore, that the next chapter in Daitōjin airpower be named in their honor." He continued, later adding
"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is deterrence, the Daitōjin way."The ceremony was also attended by Zayasu employees and family members of some of Azumaya's Phantoms. Their mood was notably celebratory, as employees frequently cheered. As dusk fell and a Zayasu employee sang the national anthem, a procession of four bombers streaked overhead—first a P-42 Fencer, followed by a restored P-1 Tengu and a P-2 Archer with their afterburners roaring, and finally, a P-3 Wraith bomber. After Endō's comments, in which he thanked the employees who had worked on the aircraft, he left the stage as dramatic music played. A pair of immense hangar doors slid open, where the P-10 sat under a massive cover and bathed in fog and light. The sheet dropped, revealing the P-10, its fuselage seemingly painted white, as it was towed forward out of the hangar to the applause of the crowd.
The long-awaited debut of the P-10 marks a milestone in reshaping the Air Force's increasingly aging bomber fleet. It comes after conflict erupted between Daitō and Rokkenjima over the Tokara islands, tensions with Midaranye over the issue of slavery seem to be unending, as piracy reemerges in the Krimeon, perhaps in some way exacerbated by conditions in Kalasin, and when the imperial military wants a highly public display to serve as a pointed warning to any of Daitō's potential adversaries the world over. And if war were to break out again, recent military advancements—particularly air defenses—will require the Air Force to have aircraft that can slip undetected into enemy territory. The Air Force hopes that the P-10's advanced stealth capabilities, brought about in part thanks to recent advances in radar absorbent materials, will allow the aircraft to carry out such penetrating strike missions. Air Force officials envision the P-10 as the "backbone" of its future bomber force, as well as a key element of the Daitōjin military arsenal for perhaps the next half-century. When the highly-classified bomber starts arriving at bases such as Onagawa AFB in Otobe, it will come with the capability to to carry standoff and direct attack munitions, as well as, in the future, hypersonic weapons. It will also come with a hefty price-tag for the program.
An expert on the military budget, Shusaku Arisaka, told us that the P-10 Phantom will be the one of the three largest aircraft acquisitions in Daitōjin military history, rivaled only by the J-20 and an as-of-yet unnamed aircraft under the JAST program. Other major efforts currently underway include Navy shipbuilding programs such as the
Miyakejima and
Minekaze-classes, as well as the fielding of the Army's new Type 83
Bushi MBT and plans to field hypersonic missiles in the coming years.
As more P-10s become available, they will replace the aging P-2 Archer and P-3 Wraith bombers as the Air Force prepares to move to a two-bomber fleet. The air force plans to retire all P-2s and P-3s by the early 2030s, leaving the service with at least 100 P-10 and Cold War-era P-42 Fencers, which are set to receive new engines starting later this year. While no further notes, save only for confirming long-held suspicions about the aircraft's RAM coating, were made about the aircraft's capabilities, Minister Easashi did confirm that the aircraft will begin flight tests later this year. Zayasu has further stated that the date of that first flight will occur based on data from the aircraft's ground testing. It has further been confirmed that there are currently six aircraft already in some stage of production.
