Recently, a shocking moment has arrived for China's aviation industry: the "Huiying 60 large unmanned transport aircraft," developed by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation, made its public debut. This giant, derived from the classic Y-8 transport aircraft, immediately set a world record - the largest unmanned transport aircraft in the world.
The design path of the Huiying 60 is clearly discernible. It retains the sturdy and reliable four-engine airframe structure and core platform of the Y-8, but implemented two key changes: completely removing the cockpit, while performing precise modifications on the nose and fuselage to meet the new requirements of unmanned flight. This modification path allows Shenyang Aircraft Corporation to fully utilize the mature platform technology and extensive industrial foundation of the Y-8, greatly accelerating the R&D process.
The maximum takeoff weight of the Huiying 60 reaches an astonishing 61 tons. This number not only makes it an undeniable "giant" in the field of unmanned transport aircraft globally, but also makes the W5000 unmanned transport aircraft, which was just launched and claimed to be "the largest in the world" (with a payload of about 5 tons), look inferior by comparison. The emergence of the Huiying 60 marks a critical leap for China in the field of large unmanned transport platforms, from a follower to a leader.
This raises a question: why does China need such a huge unmanned transport aircraft? Of course, it is to adapt to various usage scenarios.
Firstly, a revolutionary breakthrough in military transportation: high-risk airspaces on modern battlefields pose significant threats to transport aircraft and their crews. The emergence of the Huiying 60 can maintain a strategic delivery capability of 20 tons per mission, while completely eliminating the risk of pilot casualties, opening up a new model of logistics support for future battlefields.
Secondly, the potential as a "mother ship" beyond transportation: the potential of the Huiying 60 goes far beyond transportation. Its large body space and carrying capacity make it an ideal "drone aircraft carrier." Whether through side doors or large tail doors, it can efficiently deploy dozens of small swarm drones with long-range combat capabilities, forming a wide-area aerial strike network. The ample nose space also provides an ideal condition for deploying powerful swarm command and control relay systems.
Thirdly, the cornerstone of future "high-tech" unmanned platforms: the Y-8/Y-9 series platform has long served as the core carrier for China's Air Force high-tech series special aircraft (reconnaissance, anti-submarine warfare, early warning, electronic warfare, etc.). The Huiying 60 inherits this gene, and its large platform advantage makes it likely to become an ideal basis for future large-scale unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, unmanned early warning aircraft, and unmanned electronic warfare aircraft, capable of carrying heavier and more complex advanced mission systems.
The true ambition of the Huiying 60 project is to create a new type of general-purpose large unmanned platform. It can bear heavy responsibilities in the transportation field, and also has deep potential to be expanded into a swarm mother ship and a special mission platform (early warning, electronic warfare, etc.). This design philosophy of "multi-functional, multi-use" represents a forward-looking layout by China's aviation industry for the future of intelligent and unmanned warfare forms.
The unveiling of the Huiying 60 is not only a concentrated display of China's aviation technological strength, but also a profound prediction of the future form of warfare. When this world's largest unmanned transport aircraft roars into the sky, it will not only carry cargo, but also be a key pivot for China to build an intelligent and unmanned air power system.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7529750860404032015/
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