They are from a video.
Chinese MALE, HALE (and rotary, small, suicide) UAV/UCAV thread
- Thread starter Blitzo
- Start date
Considering the payload of CH-9 is only 480kg, I can't see how it would do that.
Alternatively, the "hypersonic missile" in that picture may simply be a different missile to the "KD-21" we've seen on H-6K in the past, which actually would make a lot of sense to me.
I'm well aware of that picture. Whatever that missile is, it must be far smaller than the actual KD-21 which equips H-6Ks and correspondingly would have much lower range and warhead size as well. Considering the overall payload of CH-9 is 480kg, it cannot be heavier than that.
Furthermore, what the UAV is advertised as being compatible with, versus what is realistic and desirable for the PLA to procure are two very separate things.
There is no need for observers to get excited over suboptimal strike systems because they just happen to be revealed, when we all know there are more viable and survivable strike systems being developed that they would actually use in a contested environment.
Once they show a flying wing stealthy UCAV with a combat radius of 2000-3000km that can carry a couple of small sized hypersonic ALBMs internally, then yeah that would be viable.
Platforms like CH-9 won't be able to survive outside the immediate first island chain during commencement of hostilities (and even operating there would require the PLA to very convincingly seize air and sea control in the first island chain to begin with)
The AR-5 "loitering missile" is the most consequential of the bunch, and afaik we haven't seen it displayed before with specs.
A range of nearly 1300km, an all up weight of under 150kg, and a wide altitude envelope from 30m to 11km, and presumably being a low diameter weapon as well... this is obviously very well suited for a MALD/MALD-J esque payload and tbh is something that the PLA has been missing for a while.
The standoff range and low mass (and presumably diameter) means something like H-6K can carry dozens of these and launch them a couple of hundred km outside of opfor air defenses and immediately saturate the airspace with loitering jamming emitters, to complicate and operate alongside an organized fires salvo.
What distances can control/comms links with these large UCAVs generally be maintained at, especially considering wartime conditions of EW and possible ASAT warfare resulting in loss of most or even all satellites? That's also an important factor determining whether it's feasible to conduct strikes against targets as far as Australia with them.
People are a bit too obsessed with going to Australia.
If the most valuable volume strike target remaining for China is Australia, the war is already long over.
Nearly all fighting will be on Korea, Taiwan, Japan and maybe Philippines but they're more of a punching bag. This is the grey zone where China holds some positions and US holds some positions.
There are tens of millions of target points in this whole region, and if China can match most of them, the war is always going to be unequivocally won.
Among many other products, US can't replenish semiconductors without access to either Korea, Japan or China itself. So even far before China has flattened every hostile city east of Taiwan province, US will already start running dry on crucial supplies.
Drones like CH-9 (or even better, the new hive drone) are perfect for that. They can operate in safe airspace and act as extra bomb trucks or even lob penetration aids and provide ISR to help other platforms get through with heavier munitions.
High end weapons are great for breaking up the US invasion force, but as long as there are countries that support US aggression, the US forces can simply resupply, rearm and/or wait around. Eventually, there may be issues with them bringing a huge numerical advantage (less likely now than a decade ago). To stop countries from supporting US aggression, a large low end ground attack capability is key.
Mass UAV and bomber attacks around the clock will cause severe loss of morale on the ground, making these countries in the 1st island chain withdraw support from the US, or at least unable to contribute to continued aggression. And once they're gone, Australia is just an open target.
this Jiutian UAV is becoming one of the stars of the show pretty early on. Even ithome is covering it.
I think just the sheer size of this thing is going to be quite impressive. you can basically have this fly to maybe half way between China and Sasebo or China and Okinawa and drop like a thousand mini-drones from the hive and just have it target all the command centers and sensors around the military base.
I don't think that guy specifically mentioned that the CH-7 is going to be carrier-capable, only that the PLAN will be one of the customers of the CH-7. Given the listed speed and endurance, operating from land bases shouldn't be much of a hassle for operations within the 1IC-2IC belt.
Also, the listed wingspan means that the CH-7 is going to be on a really tight squeeze on the landing strip of the carriers. Not ideal.
Last edited:
Yeah, the more specific wording is more like, "we're prepared to make relevant designs for it to be carrier capable".
Which is different from it actually going on the carrier.
