Drone mothership Jiutian airborne: China’s giant reconnaissance and attack drone flies for the first time

Footage is now available of the first flight of China’s record-breaking drone mothership, the “SS-UAV” named Jiutian (Zhu Tian). In Puchen in Shaanxi province, China flew the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of up to 16 tonnes, built by aviation group AVIC, for the first time.

The dimensions are certainly impressive: the UAV is reported to be around 16.5 metres long with a 25-metre wingspan, and the tips of its twin tail rise about five metres high. At the maximum take-off weight of 16 tonnes, up to six tonnes can reportedly be payload. A turbofan engine is said to accelerate the giant drone to up to 700 km/h.

According to Chinese sources, it reaches a maximum altitude of almost 15,000 metres, a range of around 7,000 kilometres and an endurance of up to twelve hours.

What the drone mothership can carry

The drone is controlled via satellite communications. On board are a stabilised electro-optical/infrared sight system and apparently also a radar. Eight external hardpoints can carry a wide range of air-to-ground, air-to-sea and air-to-air guided weapons, which are widely available in China.

Its most outstanding feature, however, is the modular payload container in the fuselage. Officially, China emphasises that it can transport heavy goods and deliver them precisely to remote mountain regions and islands. Also highlighted are its uses in natural disasters, cartography, prospecting for mineral resources, maritime surveillance and fighting forest fires.

Internationally, however, it was above all the drone swarm launched from the container in an AI video at the drone’s presentation that caused a stir.