With the continuous progress of science and technology, UAV technology is increasingly widely used in the military field. In past programs, we have repeatedly mentioned three major trends in the development of China's UAVs: high-speed, stealth, and large-scale long-range. These trends not only reflect the rapid development of China's drone technology, but also indicate the importance of situational awareness in future high-end wars.
Among the Chinese UAV army, the Wuzhan-8 is eye-catching for its high-altitude and high-speed characteristics, which can carry out rapid strikes outside the enemy's defense zone and pose a serious threat to the most valuable targets such as aircraft carriers. High-altitude long-range subsonic reconnaissance aircraft such as the Wuzhen-7 provide long-term reconnaissance capabilities and provide key information for operational decision-making.
The development of stealth UAVs is a highlight of China's UAV technology. Stealth UAVs with flying wing layouts such as Attack-11, Rainbow-7, Star Shadow, Cloud Shadow-5000T and Sky Eagle not only have excellent stealth performance, but also can reconnoiter the movement of key enemy targets in the enemy's air defense network for a long time. These drones work more smoothly with front-line troops, providing unparalleled flexibility for tactical reconnaissance.
Among them, the "Skyhawk" stealth UAV, as a new force recently announced, has attracted widespread attention for its performance parameters and potential uses. Its maximum take-off weight is about 3 tons, the air retention time is more than 5 hours, and the combat radius is more than 1000 kilometers, all of which show its excellent reconnaissance capabilities. As for whether it has a built-in magazine design, although there is no conclusion at present, the possibility of developing into an integrated model cannot be ignored in the future.
The emergence of the "Skyhawk" UAV not only demonstrates the maturity of China's flying-wing UAV technology, but also indicates the wide application of UAVs in the PLA. This highly automated drone can be deployed in Army Group to perform penetrating long-term uninterrupted reconnaissance missions to provide precise intelligence support for long-range fire strikes and surface-to-surface tactical missiles. At the same time, it can also be deployed in the rocket forces to provide reconnaissance guidance and assessment of strike effects for surface-to-surface tactical missiles.
It is worth mentioning that the small fuselage and folding wing design of the Skyhawk UAV give it the potential for deployment on amphibious assault ships and aircraft carriers. This capability allows the Skyhawk to go out for reconnaissance and provide accurate targets for the PLA's hypersonic missiles, thus posing a serious threat to enemy aircraft carrier formations.
Overall, the general trend of stealth of Chinese drones has been established, which will not only improve the situational awareness of the PLA, but also make China occupy a more important position in the global drone market. With the continuous progress of technology and the expansion of application fields, UAVs will play an increasingly important role in high-end wars in the future, and China's advantages in this field will become more and more obvious.