In a giant step to boost its military capabilities, China has tested its first stealth unmanned combat aerial vehicle (drone) named Sharp Sword.
Beijing, Nov 22/Nationalturk – According to Chinese media, Beijing has tested its first stealth unmanned combat aerial vehicle (drone) named Sharp Sword.
“The Sharp Sword (stealth drone) conducted its first flight in a test-flight center at an undisclosed place in Southwest China at around 1300 hours on Thursday, fans said on cjdby.net, China’s most popular military website. The test lasted nearly 20 minutes,” China daily reported.
It stated that several pictures in the military website post showed a delta-wing drone in flight with one photo showing its takeoff. Images posted online showed a sleek grey delta-wing aircraft apparently powered by a jet engine and resembling an American combat drone.
The paper quoted military observing as saying that Sharp Sword was developed by the Shenyang Aircraft Design Institute and manufactured by Hongdu Aviation Industry Group. “Both belong to Aviation Industry Corp of China, the nation’s leading aircraft manufacturer.”
China joins select group of 4 countries having drone technology
The drone, according to media reports, has been called China’s equivalent to the US’ Northrop Grumman X-47 series and the nEUROn, a joint effort of various European companies.
They said the successful flight shows China has again narrowed the air-power disparity between itself and Western nations.
With the test flight of unmanned combat aerial vehicle on Thursday, China became the fourth power in the world after US, European Union and United Kingdom to have the capability of putting a stealth drone into the sky.
“I think the size and technological capability of the Sharp Sword make it a suitable choice for the navy if it is to select an unmanned combat platform for its aircraft carrier,” Wang Ya’nan, deputy editor-in-chief at Aerospace Knowledge magazine was quoted as saying by China Daily.
He said that the high visibility on the sea and the advanced radar used on modern battleships mean the carrier-based aircraft must have excellent stealth technology to evade detection, which in turn provide a good opportunity for the stealth drone.
“The drone used in the test flight seemed to be equipped with the RD-93, a Russian turbofan engine, he said, adding that the engine was originally designed for a fighter jet, making it relatively large for a drone,” added Wang.
Write your comments and thoughts below
Faiz Ahmad / NationalTurk China News
