U.S. media suddenly noticed: Last year, a series of stealth combat drones were spotted near the Type 076 amphibious assault ship "Sichuan" at Shanghai's Huangdong Shipyard. According to speculation, these drones are planned to be carried by the Sichuan ship, which also serves as new evidence that the Type 076 amphibious assault ship can support high-end aerial unmanned operations.

U.S. media observed several new drones next to the Sichuan ship

The U.S. "The Drive" website stated: From several photos released last year, it was found that the Sichuan ship was in a dry dock, and there were seven drones next to it. They all have distinctive dual-side outward-tilted short tail wings, indicating they belong to a shipboard version, but it cannot be ruled out that they are full-scale models, as shipboard aircraft models are common during the development and testing of Chinese aircraft carriers.

One of the drones resembles the well-known "Yilong" series of medium-altitude long-endurance UAVs in appearance, which raises the possibility that the PLA may be developing a shipboard version of the Yilong UAV or other similar medium-altitude long-endurance UAVs.

It is worth noting that the U.S. military is also trying to make medium-altitude long-endurance UAVs shipboard, allowing them to take off and land on aircraft carriers in the future. Currently, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems is responsible for this R&D work. It is reported that the carrier capability of the medium-altitude long-endurance UAV system has already been tested on various flat decks.

Regarding the other six shipboard aircraft, the U.S. "The Drive" website stated: They seem to belong to the same type, with main features including swept-wing configuration, outward-tilting twin tail wings, built-in weapon bays, and a single jet engine supplied by a rear air intake. Overall, they have some similarities with the U.S. "Valkyrie" UAV, but their size is significantly larger.

It is reported that these UAVs have been optimized for ground attack missions, but intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, and electronic warfare remain their main uses.

The main combat power of the Sichuan ship is UAVs

Due to its unique electromagnetic propulsion catapult, the Type 076 ship with a displacement of about 44,000 tons is completely different from other large deck amphibious ships. Its future shipboard aviation force will mainly consist of UAVs. The appearance of these UAVs next to the Sichuan ship may be for compatibility evaluation or some static testing, preparing for future sea trials with catapult tests.

Previously, it was generally expected that the Sichuan ship's shipboard aviation squadron would mainly consist of the stealth flying wing UAV "Attack-11". This speculation is based on the fact that a model resembling the "Attack-11" UAV was seen at a test site on Changhai Island, Shanghai, and this location is very close to the construction site of the Type 076 ship. It now appears that these six UAVs and the one similar to the "Yilong" will also be deployed on the ship, becoming part of the Sichuan ship's combat power. From an operational perspective, they may serve as a supplementary force to the shipboard "Attack-11".

At the end of October last year, a red catapult test truck was seen on the deck of the Sichuan ship, indicating that it had started testing the only catapult on board. After such a long time, it is expected that the catapulting of shipboard UAVs is imminent.

The U.S. media also said: At least three types of UAVs are to be deployed on the Sichuan ship, but this number might not be final. Considering China's technical expertise in the UAV field, more new shipboard UAVs may appear in the future. This means that once the Sichuan ship becomes operational, it will deploy a large number of different types of shipboard UAVs.

U.S. media speculate: Attack-11 will also be deployed on the aircraft carrier

The U.S. media further stated: The shipboard UAVs being developed by the PLA are not expected to be used only on the Type 076 amphibious assault ship. The Fujian ship, equipped with an electromagnetic catapult, will also be equipped with shipboard UAVs, thus becoming part of China's carrier combat power. It is even possible that these shipboard UAVs could become unmanned companions for the J-35 stealth carrier-based fighter.



Original: toutiao.com/article/7600723890335154722/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.