18 janvier 2021 | International, Aérospatial
China's new WJ-700 high-altitude, long-endurance and high-speed armed reconnaissance drone successfully completed its maiden flight earlier this week.
The “rare type” drone is capable of executing both attack and reconnaissance missions in China, according to a statement the Third Academy of the state-owned arms firm China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp (CASIC) sent to the Global Times.
First unveiled at Airshow China in 2018, the WJ-700 is expected to have a maximum take-off weight of 3,500 kg, with a maximum endurance of 20 hours.
It is capable of performing air-to-surface precision strikes in multiple situations such as stand-off ground attacks, anti-ship, and anti-radiation attacks, the statement said, noting that it will “create a new pattern for drone combat.”
China wants to begin selling the drones to domestic and international market needs in the next five to 10 years.
Compared to other popular drones, the distinguishing characteristic of the WJ-700 is its large size, meaning it has an outstanding payload capacity that allows it to carry larger munitions like anti-ship missiles and stand-off weapons that enable the drone to launch attacks from outside of an enemy anti-aircraft fire coverage zone, Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert, said.
Key tactical and even strategic battlefield hubs, including radar installations, warships and command centers could be targets of the WJ-700, analysts said.
The WJ-700 could deliver diverse combat missions in high-threat battlefield environments with its precision combat and wide-area reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities. After completing various system-level tests and verifications, it will be officially put into combat applications, the academy said.
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by Robert Farley Follow drfarls on TwitterL Key Point: Paris has a long history of building aircraft carriers, including their current nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle. If France wants to remain a relevant great power, it needs to think about what comes next after its carrier reaches retirement. France's first carrier entered service in the interwar period, but for a very long time the French navy trailed behind international counterparts in naval aviation. This changed in the Cold War, however, and today France operates the world's most advanced carrier outside of the U.S. Navy. How did France build its naval aviation force, what does it do today and what direction will France take next? The History of French Carriers Soon after World War I, France joined the international carrier community through the conversion of the battleship hulk Bearn. Although large, Bearn did not carry many aircraft and never actively participated in combat, even during World War II. The construction of two additional large carriers was suspended by World War II, but after the war the French navy gained access to light carriers transferred from Britain and the United States. Four in total, these carriers helped the French navy develop its naval aviation muscles. The next step was big; France constructed a pair of CATOBAR aircraft carriers, Clemenceau and Foch. Commissioned in 1961 and 1963, the ships displaced 30,000 tons and could carry around forty modern aircraft. A third carrier, the much larger Verdun, was cancelled before being laid down. Clemenceau and Foch, operating the F-8 Crusader and later the Super Etendard, would form the backbone of the world's second largest carrier force for the latter half of the Cold War. After nearly forty years of hard service, the two ships were decommissioned in favor of France's next carrier, the nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle. https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/can-france-eventually-replace-its-single-aircraft-carrier-122231