CHINA-PLA: NEW HIGH-ALTITUDE DRONE

On December 15, 2017, Eugene K Chow wrote that in a major breakthrough, China recently unveiled a formidable new high-altitude drone that could give its military a significant advantage. Designed to operate in “near space,” 12.5 miles above sea level or higher -- dubbed a drone “death zone” as the air at this elevation makes it difficult to generate lift and extremely low temperatures cause electrical equipment like batteries to fail -- China’s new drones can break through air defenses, avoid radar detection, and collect valuable intelligence while staying well beyond the range of anti-aircraft fire. At a research facility in Inner Mongolia, two drones were attached to a weather balloon and deployed at 30,000 feet and 82,000 feet. The drones were launched by an electromagnetic pulse sling shot that catapulted them out at 60 mph.The drones coasted to targets over sixty miles away, automatically adjusting their flight path and sending data back to a ground station. Most notably, due to their small size, they were barely detectable on radar during their test flight. The drones were equipped with several sensors, including a terrain mapping device and an electromagnetic signal detector that would allow it to pinpoint military troops. However, the drones could no carry cameras, as that would require a bulky antenna to transmit photo or video data, which would throw off its delicate aerodynamics. Its wings and body are seamlessly blended into a flat, tailless design that generates lift in the thin atmosphere of near space. Some models, like the two recently tested, do not have engines, instead drifting to their targets like a glider.Professor Yang Yanchu, the head of the project from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the South China Morning Post “The goal of our research is to launch hundreds of these drones in one shot, like letting loose a bee or ant colony.” China has been actively developing new technology that would allow it to operate in this largely uncontested new frontier with its Scientific Experiment System of Near Space, a pilot program led by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In June, China test flew [6] a solar-powered drone at 65,000 feet. The massive drone, dubbed the Caihong-T4, has a wingspan of 130 ft and is designed to stay aloft for months at a time with minimal supervision. But unlike NASA's Helios Prototype, which soared [7] to nearly 97,000 feet on solar power and cost millions of dollars, China’s newest high-flying drone would only cost a few hundred yuan. With these cheap, stealthy high-altitude drones, China has leapt ahead in the near space race.
(Comment:So far no country has been able to operate in near space, as most aircraft cannot fly at such high altitudes and it is too low for satellites.)






Subscribe to Newswire | Site Map | Email Us
Centre for China Analysis and Strategy, A-50, Second Floor, Vasant Vihar, New Delhi-110057
Tel: 011 41017353
Email: office@ccasindia.org