The hottest new type of UAV in China can detect st

China's new UAV can detect stealth aircraft and aircraft carriers for several months. Reference news on November 8, according to Air China on October 31, the "rising star" solar UAV large-scale (20 meter wingspan) technology verification machine (hereinafter referred to as "rising star" verification machine) designed and developed by the first aircraft design and Research Institute of aviation industry of China (hereinafter referred to as "rising star" verification machine) completed its first flight, This is another initiative of the first Academy of Aeronautics and Astronautics after the completion of the long endurance test flight of the "10 meter wingspan" technology verification aircraft (which achieved continuous flight of more than 5 hours in September 2018)

according to the official data published by the first Academy of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the whole fuselage of the "rising star" certification aircraft adopts an ultra light composite material structural design (with a wingspan of 20 meters, a chord length of 1.1 meters, and a total weight of only 18.9 kg, which can be easily lifted by an adult). Powered by the solar battery on the wing, it has the ability to cruise at an altitude of more than 20000 meters and continuously fly in the air during ultra long endurance. Theoretically, it can fly in the air for months, It has great development potential in both military and civilian fields

the ground data map of the large-scale technology verification machine of the "rising star" solar UAV has a wingspan of 20 meters, but it is designed with ultra light materials, which can be carried by only one adult. (image source: China Aerospace Industry Corporation)

the flight test data map of the "Helios" solar powered UAV developed by NASA, with a record wingspan of 78 meters, has crashed into the Pacific Ocean due to accidental failure in 2003

solar powered UAV is an aircraft that uses solar radiation as energy and combines batteries to achieve high altitude and long endurance flight. During the day, solar radiation is converted into electric energy through solar panels, part of which is used for flight and part of which is stored in batteries. At night, the electric energy released by the battery continues to drive the aircraft to fly and reciprocate in turn, which can realize uninterrupted flight. It has the advantages of high flight altitude and long empty time. The first solar powered unmanned aerial vehicle in the world is the "sunrise 1" developed by the United States. It is equipped with 4096 monocrystalline silicon solar panels with an output power of 450 watts. It successfully made its first flight in California in November 1974, with a flight altitude of 152 meters. This first flight marks the advent of the era of human solar flight

since then, countries around the world have conducted in-depth research on the technology of solar powered UAVs. For example, NASA launched the "Helios" large-scale solar powered UAV in 1999, with a record size. Its wingspan alone is 75 meters (more than the C-5 transport aircraft with the largest wingspan of 68 meters in the U.S. military), and the whole fuselage is made of carbon fiber composite materials. In August, 2001, "Helios" set a new world record for the longest horizontal flight of a fixed wing aircraft, flying at an altitude of 29000 meters for more than 40 minutes

the British "westerly" -7 solar powered UAV broke the world record for the longest single flight time of a solar powered UAV in July 2010, with a endurance of 336 hours and 22 minutes

in addition to the United States, the "westerly" -6 solar powered UAV, funded by the British Ministry of defense and developed by the British kenetik company, once set a world record for the longest flight time of a UAV. The UAV has a total length of 12.2 meters, a total weight of 327 kg, a maximum cruise speed of 70 meters per second, and an empty time of 82 hours and 37 minutes. Kenetik later developed the more advanced "Xifeng" -7, which broke the world record for the longest single flight time of a solar powered UAV in July 2010, with a endurance of 336 hours and 22 minutes (equivalent to two weeks), which has not been broken yet. Due to its excellent performance, the Royal Air Force later announced the purchase of this type of UAV and officially equipped the force in 2017

due to its advantages of ultra-long blank time and ultra-high flight altitude, the solar powered UAV is very suitable for ground reconnaissance missions. The picture shows the propaganda picture of the British "westerly" -s solar powered UAV for border patrol and ground detection

the military potential of solar powered UAVs is very broad. According to professional calculations, if thousands of solar powered UAVs are used, the broadband network in major regions of the world can be seamlessly covered. The coverage of a solar powered UAV is equivalent to 200 ground base stations. In contrast, the payload of the solar powered UAV can reach 20% of the takeoff weight, while the communication satellite is less than 0.5%. In addition, due to the stay in the air for several months, the solar powered UAV can also act as a "reconnaissance satellite" in the atmosphere, which is not only faster than the reconnaissance satellite's response speed (the operating orbit of the reconnaissance satellite is relatively fixed, and the zenith crossing time over a specific target is also very limited) but also more flexible. Due to the reliance on solar power supply, it does not need to replenish fuel frequently, The comprehensive cost of obtaining high-resolution photos is only one seventh of that of reconnaissance satellites

for China's solar powered UAV, the military potential also includes the ability to carry out the detection mission of the enemy stealth fighter at high altitude after installing quantum radar, and carrying high-resolution optical reconnaissance equipment or long-range radar system to detect the movement of the enemy aircraft carrier strike group in the ocean, and provide real-time data updates for the friendly forces to carry out anti aircraft carrier operations. It is worth waiting to see what development it will have in the future. (text/Huang Jinyi)

[extended reading] Indian media are concerned about Pakistan's purchase of 48 pterosaurs-2: China's largest export order for UAVs

reference news on October 12, the Hindu news station published a report entitled "China will sell 48 high-end military UAVs to Pakistan" on October 9, saying that Chinese media 9 said that China will sell 48 high-end military UAVs to Pakistan, its "all-weather ally", A military observer said it would be the largest transaction of its kind. The transaction amount was not disclosed

it is reported that the pterodactyl-2, produced by Chengdu Aircraft Industry (Group) Co., Ltd., is a high-end reconnaissance, strike and multi-purpose durable unmanned aircraft system

the media disclosed that these unmanned aerial vehicles will be jointly produced by the two countries

it is reported that China is Islamabad's "all-weather ally" and the largest supplier of weapon systems to the Pakistani army. The two countries also jointly manufactured Xiaolong single engine multipurpose fighter

it is reported that China's announcement to allow the sale of high-end military UAVs coincides with India's intention to purchase S-400 missile defense systems from Russia. The agreement was finalized during Putin's visit to New Delhi

it was reported that the Pakistan Air Force's "Lion" aerobatic team announced the purchase of Chinese drones on its official social media account on the 7th

it was reported that the amount and time of the transaction were not disclosed in this news, nor did it disclose when the pterodactyl-2 would be delivered

according to reports, the stunt team announced that Pakistan Aviation Industry Corporation and AVIC Chengdu Aircraft Industry (Group) Co., Ltd. will jointly produce UAVs

it is reported that pterosaur-2 made its first flight in February last year. According to Chinese media, the pterodactyl-2 UAV has already obtained the largest order of Chinese UAV in the overseas market before its maiden flight. However, the report did not specifically say that Nike is innovating a new business model in the 21st century to clarify who the buyer is

it was reported that within 10 months after the first flight, many live fire tests were carried out according to the requirements of customers, including fixed targets, moving targets, time sensitive targets and ground air coordination

military experts said that if confirmed, this transaction involving as many as 48 pterosaurs-2 would be China's largest UAV export transaction so far. (compiled/he Jine)

data figure: "pterodactyl" II. The first flight of the new long endurance reconnaissance strike integrated multi-purpose UAV system

(00:14:01)

[extended reading] Chinese UAVs are popular in the Middle East and the United States "worry + envy"

reference news on October 9. Recently, whether it is the next generation equipment development plan of the U.S. Army, the fleet renewal plan of the U.S. Navy or the structural adjustment plan of the U.S. Marine Corps, they have played the "trump card" of "great power competition" and "China threat", As a bargaining chip to fight for the interests of more services and departments. In the recent tug of war between the US Congress and the government on opening restrictions on the export of drones, the "China factor" was once again thrown out

according to a recent comment released by the US "defense", as a major selling country in the world military UAV market, trying to transmit data between the two software packages, Chinese made UAVs are galloping on the battlefield of many countries in the Middle East, performing various tasks including battlefield monitoring, firepower support, ground precision strike and so on, and have been widely praised by customers in the Middle East. With the support of good battlefield performance and reputation, the export volume of China's UAVs to the Middle East is expanding, the types of export products are enriching, and the quality and income are also improving

American media believe that among the military UAVs exported by China, "Rainbow" series UAVs and "pterodactyl" UAVs are particularly prominent. US media quoted the official data released by China Aerospace Science and technology group as saying that since 2014, China has exported more than 30 rainbow 4 UAVs to Saudi Arabia, Iraq and other countries. This type of UAV is widely used in the anti-terrorism battlefield in Yemen and Iraq. It not only shows excellent combat performance, but also is widely popular because of its convenience and cost advantage in operation, deployment and maintenance. In addition, according to Jane's Defense Weekly, the United Arab Emirates has also purchased the more advanced "pterodactyl" 2 UAV from China, and has introduced the production line of this type of UAV from China. In addition, more than 10 countries are negotiating with China to introduce military UAVs

data figure: pterodactyl I unmanned aerial vehicle appears in Zhuhai 1. If the power transformer has input, there is no output at Haihang exhibition

as a country ranking first in the world arms market for a long time, the reason why the United States is "jealous" of the popularity of Chinese drones is naturally the fear that the "fat meat" of the Middle East arms market will shrink. Many countries in the Middle East are rich in oil and gas resources and weak in independent weapons research and development. In recent years, they have generally fallen into long-term wars, so they have become "big players" in the international arms market in terms of demand and purchasing power. At the same time, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and other countries have maintained close military ties with the United States for a long time, which makes these countries regarded by the United States as "prohibitions" that are difficult for other countries to touch with weapons. However, due to the restrictions of the U.S. UAV export policy and the competitiveness of Chinese UAVs in terms of performance and cost, the U.S. UAV export to the Middle East is quite weak. For the U.S. government, which haggles over economic interests, this phenomenon is obviously intolerable

in addition, the United States, which has always been good at using arms exports to influence and intervene in the international situation, cannot help "pushing itself and others" when observing China's arms exports. The U.S. diplomatic scholars station has commented that China's export of drones to Middle East countries may lead to a change in the regional power situation. The United States believes that the country that obtains China's unmanned aerial vehicles will have certain military technological advantages over neighboring countries, thus enabling the country to more actively use force to deal with security threats. At the same time, some American think tanks believe that China's unmanned aerial vehicles will become the means by which China can open up China