北京时间8月20日，樊振东出席杜塞尔多夫乒乓球俱乐部2026/27赛季新赛季发布会，正式公开亮相。樊振东在发布会上全程用英文发言：“我很荣幸站在这里。我很兴奋能开启这段新的旅程。我会尽我所能，追随波尔的脚步，为俱乐部和这座城市建立属于自己的传奇。
Two Y-20B large transport aircraft fl y in the sky. Photo: VCG
A documentary on the domestically developed Y-20 large transport aircraft family, aired by state media on Wednesday evening, revealed that the Y-20B can switch between transport and aerial refueling functions. A pilot said the aircraft could also take on roles including bomber, early warning aircraft and electronic warfare platform.
With such modifications, the Y-20B platform offers significant advantages in mission flexibility and support capabilities, a military affairs expert told the Global Times.
According to the video released by state broadcaster CCTV News, since the Y-20 was equipped with the domestically developed high-bypass-ratio turbofan WS-20 engine - nicknamed "Chinese heart" - the Y-20B's mission profile has become more flexible. While it is primarily a transport aircraft, it can be quickly converted into an aerial refueling tanker by adding refueling pods and related kits. The line between transport and tanker aircraft is increasingly blurred, and this has significantly expanded the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force's tanker fleet.
Previously, a promotional video released by China Military Bugle, an official media account affiliated with the PLA news media center, showed that in 2025, the Y-20B was fitted with the WS-20, making it more powerful, more fuel-efficient, longer-ranged and part of a growing family of aircraft.
In the CCTV documentary, Pang Rongqi, a member of an Air Force aviation unit, said: "As a transport aircraft platform, the Y-20 is unique to our country and will play an increasingly important role in the future. The boundaries between transport aircraft and bombers, early warning aircraft, or even electronic warfare aircraft are becoming increasingly blurred. It is possible that all these missions could be accomplished with our transport aircraft platform."
Song Zhongping, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Thursday that the key message from this official release is that the Y-20B is a multi-role platform capable of rapid switching between transport and refueling functions.
The fully domestically developed Y-20B itself is an integrated transport-tanker platform, embodying the concept of a multi-role tanker transport (MRTT). By equipping different functional pods, it can quickly change roles: With refueling pods, it becomes a tanker; with electronic jamming pods, it becomes an electronic warfare platform; with bombing modules, it could potentially perform bombing missions; and with early warning modules, it can serve as an airborne early warning platform, Song said.
It is not uncommon internationally to modify transport aircraft for special roles, including bomber-like missions. In March 2021, the US Air Force converted an MC-130J transport aircraft into a bomber by having it drop a JASSM (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile) deployment box, according to a Forbes report in May 2021.
Thanks to the Y-20's fully indigenous design, Song said, Chinese engineers have a comprehensive understanding of its aerodynamic configuration, airframe structure, flight control and avionics systems. This means that, as long as the technical conditions are met, modifications can be carried out with greater flexibility and tailored to operational needs. Whether it is a "quick-change" multi-role configuration through pod-based modularization, or deeper modifications, such as installing large radar domes for dedicated early warning aircraft or adding more fuel tanks for dedicated tankers, all can be flexibly achieved.
Song also said that the Y-20B can quickly switch between transport, tanker and electronic warfare roles by mounting different pods, achieving multi-role capability and greatly enhancing the PLA Air Force's mission flexibility and support efficiency.
Its platform potential is vast. It can be deeply modified into dedicated special mission aircraft such as early warning or electronic warfare platforms, filling critical capability gaps in the Air Force. At the same time, it can maintain its basic transport function and, when needed, rapidly transform into other combat platforms through modularization, becoming a true all-rounder.
The core value of this flexibility is that it allows rapid reconfiguration based on wartime mission requirements, while in peacetime it can perform routine transport missions, maximizing equipment effectiveness. The Y-20B's service not only represents a leap in China's strategic projection capability but also provides critical support for the PLA Air Force in building a systematic and diversified air capability, Song noted.
On July 6, 2016, the Y-20, China's domestically developed next-generation large military transport aircraft, officially entered service with PLA Air Force aviation units. A decade later, the Y-20 has evolved from a single transport platform into a family of models including the Y-20A, Y-20B and YU-20 aerial refueling tanker, with its operations extending to more than 40 countries and regions across four continents, according to the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, the aircraft's manufacturer, on its WeChat account in June 2026.
。”杜塞尔多夫市长授予樊振东特别荣誉，樊振东在杜塞尔多夫《城市金册》签名。Goldene Buch der Stadt：城市金册，德国城市高级官方荣誉，只有对城市有重要意义的人物才可以签名留名，是非常高的城市礼遇。谈及加盟感受，樊振东说已适应杜塞尔多夫的生活节奏，正为新赛季积极备战，非常期待周六的首场比赛。被问及面对新赛季是否会紧张，他坦承“会紧张”，但会保持专注、打出自己的风格，相信队友和教练会给予帮助。谈到新赛季，樊振东说：“每个赛季都是新的挑战，也是一次巨大的挑战，想赢下每一场比赛。”他感谢了杜塞尔多夫市长授予的荣誉：“对我来说，这是一种不同的荣誉，也是一份巨大的荣誉。”据此前消息，樊振东加盟德甲杜塞尔多夫俱乐部后的首组官方定妆照正式释出。一身红色新战袍搭配训练后略带汗意的松弛状态，直接眼前一亮。杜塞尔多夫官网更新樊振东个人简介，樊振东在自我介绍中写到：我是樊振东，今年29岁，右手持拍。我的球风偏向于主动进攻。在训练之余，我希望能去体验许多有趣的活动，比如看几部好电影、游览一些名胜古迹，或者去市中心逛逛。
B | 衷心希望我在杜塞尔多夫能度过一段非常愉快的时光。非常开心今年夏天能够加盟杜塞尔多夫俱乐部。其实在此之前，我就对这家俱乐部有过很多了解。我经常和我的好朋友蒂莫交流，在转会以及融入这个大家庭的过程中，他给予了我很大的帮助。我非常期待本赛季的征程，也会全力以赴打好每一场球，为球队赢取胜利贡献自己的力量。此外，官网还更新了蒂莫·波尔对樊振东的评价：“在樊振东身上，你可以看到一个完美球员所具备的终极平衡。”
