CHINESE Medium Altitude Long Endurance DRONES

[J20!]

PLAAF GJ-1's (export designation Wing Loong I):

 

[Armand2REP]

@J20 is there any video of them by the Saudis destroying Houthi positions?

 

[J20!]

@J20 is there any video of them by the Saudis destroying Houthi positions?

Haven't seen any... All the videos I've seen are of Iraqi Air force CH4 ops.

 

[proud_indian]

these are some good looking drones

 

[J20!]

These are High Altitude Long Endurance UAV's but this is the most relevant thread I guess:

The PLAAF (and possibly the Chinese Navy) seems to have quietly inducted this reconnaissance asset with 0 fan-fare, but the the box-wing EA-03 is seeing widespread use across Chinese territory.

Deployed with other reconnaissance aircraft at a South Sea Fleet Chinese Navy air base on Hainan Island:

EA-03's in satellite imagery of Shuangliao Air Base in the Northern theater taken on Feb 04th 2018.

The EA-03 was among the combat and reconnaissance aircraft deployed to Xigaze Airport in Tibet during the Doklam stand-off last year:

 

[J20!]

Henri K's write up on EA-03 deployments:

http://www.eastpendulum.com/linde-l...cibles-surveillees-par-le-drone-chinois-ea-03

India, the South China Sea, the Koreas ... These targets are being watched by the Chinese drone EA-03

BY
HENRI KENHMANN
2018-03-20

Satellite images from February show that the Chinese army seems to have sent its new EA-03 long-endurance drones to monitor the South China Sea and the Korean Peninsula, after deploying them in Tibet during the conflict with the country. India in the Doklam region last year.

In fact, at least two rhomboid wing drones can be seen in the images of Shuangliao Air Base, located in northwest China's Jilin Province, on February 4, 2018 and less than 400 kilometers from the border. Sino-North Korean.

The only large Chinese military drone - to see in the world - that has such a configuration of tandem wings whose ends meet is the EA-03. This High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) drone, designed by the 611 Chengdu Institute and assembled by the manufacturer GAIC, has a range of over 7000 km and can reach a maximum of 18 000 meters in cruising. allow it to monitor a very large area with its various embedded equipment such as high-resolution cameras and side SAR radars.


Two EA-03 drones deployed near the Sino-North Korean border (Image: Terra Server)


The exact context of this deployment is unknown for the moment, but it is plausible that it is related to the current nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula, and therefore to the gathering of American forces and its allies in the region and also the site of North Korean nuclear tests Punggye-ri. Two EA-03 drones should then allow China to continuously monitor movements on its borders.

This deployment further suggests that the EA-03 drone probably would not have only entered service with the navy, but also with the Chinese Air Force.

In parallel with its presence in northeastern China, the satellite images of February 15 also show that two more EA-03s are now in Lingshui, a Chinese navy air base on the island of Hainan. bordering the South China Sea.

In addition, two Y-8Q anti-submarine warplanes and an AWACS HJ-500 can be identified alongside them, a sign that the Chinese Navy is expanding its surveillance capabilities in this tense part of the world.


Two EA-03s are deployed in Lingshui on Hainan Island according to the images dated February 15, 2018 (Image: Terra Server)


Since the launch of mass production of this new Chinese drone in Yun Ma factory in 2016 , it is no less than seven EA-03 that are or have been deployed on the Chinese borders. This suggests that the drone would now be fully operational and able to operate in risk areas.


The known sites of Chinese drone EA-03 deployment (Image: Google Earth)

It should be noted that the three EA-03s deployed since the end of July 2017 at Shigatsé Heping Airport , in other words that of Lhasa in Tibet, have never left their duty station. Satellite images coming back just a month ago show that these long-range Chinese surveillance drones are still visible on the ground, an indirect sign that the tension with the Indian army on the disputed zone in Bhutan is far from being lowered, and there is a risk that it will come back to the surface once winter and so the snow passed.


The three EA-03 drones are deployed near Lhasa and the Sino-Indian border for 8 months (Image: Google Earth)


To be continued.

Henri K.

 

[Armand2REP]

Bad news for exports of Chinese MALE drones...

Washington relaxes rules for the export of MALE drones
Posted in Americas , Industry by Lawrence Lagneau The 20-04-2018

Unable to acquire UAV MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) with American manufacturers, due to strict rules imposed by the Obama administration, several countries in the Middle East did not hesitate to turn to a country less watched, namely China.

Thus, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, to name a few, have acquired Wing Loong II drones of Chinese Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group. Less expensive, these devices have an uncanny resemblance to the MQ-9 Reaper US General Atomics.

Such an uncanny resemblance said Peter Navarro, an economic adviser to President Trump, that the Wing Loong II is a "clear copy" of the MQ-9 Reaper.

Also, there is no question for Washington to leave scraps to Chinese competition. Hence the decision to lift some restrictions on the export of MALE drones.

This is to "rectify the decision of former President Barack Obama to limit the access of American allies in UAV technology" to "allowing US companies to market their devices directly with interested countries," explained Mr. Navarro. In a word, it will not be necessary to go through the procedure of the Foreign Military Sales.

"The export policy of the Trump administration will level the playing field by allowing US companies to increase their direct sales to authorized allies and partners," said economic adviser to Mr. Trump.

This measure is part of a broader reform that aims to facilitate and accelerate the export of US military equipment. The goal is to reduce the time to approve contracts. What it will do said Mr. Navarro will "create jobs, strengthen our allies and partners, support a strong defence industry and promote economic and security interests of the United States abroad."

http://www.opex360.com/2018/04/20/washington-assouplit-regles-lexportation-de-drones-male/

 

[rockdog]

Bad news for exports of Chinese MALE drones...

Any impact for French military drone export?

 

[Armand2REP]

Any impact for French military drone export?

The major deal for the Patroller right now is OCEAN2020 as it has been selected as the air component of the maritime surveillance of a 15 EU nation consortium. The MQ-9 could not compete as it is not certified to operate in civil airspace. This decision could impact the sale of the armed version of Patroller to Egypt but is not likely as the relations between the US are strained. The Chinese are the ones who benefited from Obama's restrictive policies and now that America is reclaiming her spot with the best MALE on the market, Chinese MALE orders can be expected to end.

 

[rockdog]

The major deal for the Patroller right now is OCEAN2020 as it has been selected as the air component of the maritime surveillance of a 15 EU nation consortium. The MQ-9 could not compete as it is not certified to operate in civil airspace. This decision could impact the sale of the armed version of Patroller to Egypt but is not likely as the relations between the US are strained. The Chinese are the ones who benefited from Obama's restrictive policies and now that America is reclaiming her spot with the best MALE on the market, Chinese MALE orders can be expected to end.

Thanks for the info, except within EU, will French Drone does as good as French cars world wide?

 

[Armand2REP]

Thanks for the info, except within EU, will French Drone does as good as French cars world wide?

I certainly hope so. It is doing much better than exports of Chinese cars.

 

[rockdog]

I certainly hope so. It is doing much better than exports of Chinese cars.

Hope the DongFeng group would be benefit as shareholder of PSA group.

 

[Armand2REP]

Hope the DongFeng group would be benefit as shareholder of PSA group.

Hope DongFeng doesn't get raided by the government and have to sell all its shares for half what they paid.

 

[rockdog]

Hope DongFeng doesn't get raided by the government and have to sell all its shares for half what they paid.

Yes, if so which means the PSA group is even in the shitty situation within China, but also the rest of world; of course, PSA was never been able to enter North America.

The Dongfeng-PSA group's headquarter is in my city, Wuhan. In 2017, the sales drop 40% comparing 2016, the market share is only 2.57%... It fired lots of workers..

I think French car is losing the top 2 market: China & USA, why this happen? any comment Armand2REP?

 

[Armand2REP]

Yes, if so which means the PSA group is even in the shitty situation within China, but also the rest of world; of course, PSA was never been able to enter North America.

The Dongfeng-PSA group's headquarter is in my city, Wuhan. In 2017, the sales drop 40% comparing 2016, the market share is only 2.57%... It fired lots of workers..

I think French car is losing the top 2 market: China & USA, why this happen? any comment Armand2REP?

No, if so it means DongFeng has too much debt to repay and the CCP will make them dump their foreign holdings to get their money.

PSA for 2017 was up 15.4% and the fourth year in a row for growth, it is doing well.

Did French car ever have the top 2 market? The reason it suffers in China is because the CCP slapped bogus lawsuits because they don't want them to compete with domestic EVs.

 

[rockdog]

No, if so it means DongFeng has too much debt to repay and the CCP will make them dump their foreign holdings to get their money.

DongFeng itself are CCP central government owned.

PSA for 2017 was up 15.4% and the fourth year in a row for growth, it is doing well.

Yeah, good for DongFeng, i think on capital level it's profitable.

Did French car ever have the top 2 market? The reason it suffers in China is because the CCP slapped bogus lawsuits because they don't want them to compete with domestic EVs.

Same reason to explain the zero existence in North America?

 

[scatterStorm]

My Chinese friends, I have few questions to ask:

1. What's the assumed recon range of EA-03?
2. Can it refuel in air?
3. What the altitude we can expect to operate?
   
4. Stealth characteristics?

 

[Armand2REP]

DongFeng itself are CCP central government owned.


Yeah, good for DongFeng, i think on capital level it's profitable.


Same reason to explain the zero existence in North America?

Yeah, good for Dongfeng, they just had a graft probe where they kicked the chairman out of the communist party.

PSA is in North America, just not in the US. The reason is economic, it is not worth producing a gas guzzler just to make Americans happy when it will sell nowhere else.

 

[J20!]

Jordanian CH-4 MALE UCAV's at SOFEX 2018 (07-10. May 2018) These are CH4B models with satcom capability as is the case with the Saudi models and unlike the Iraqi CH4A's.

https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/uv-online/sofex-2018-jordanian-ch-4-makes-public-debut/

 

[rockdog]

China Has Already Won the Drone Wars
Chinese companies are proving that America is not first in the UAV export market. Can Trump roll that back?

http://foreignpolicy.com/2018/05/10/china-enlists-u-n-to-promote-its-belt-and-road-project/

By Sharon Weinberger | May 10, 2018, 1:10 PM

AMMAN, Jordan — At a military airfield on the outskirts of the Jordanian capital, three American businessmen stood admiring the star exhibit, which looked eerily familiar: a large drone, armed with weapons under its wings, with a domed front.

“They brought the Predator here,” said one, in reference to the ubiquitous U.S. drone used in wars from Bosnia to Iraq.

“That is not a Predator,” another countered.

The drone on display was, in fact, a Chinese unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) called the Rainbow CH-4, which has quickly spread around the world. Jordan bought the drone in 2015 but displayed it publicly for the first time this year at the Special Operations Forces Exhibition and Conference, known as SOFEX, a biennial event where companies market their latest wares.

Once upon a time, the sight would have been unthinkable: The MQ-1 Predator and its successor, the more lethal MQ-9 Reaper, were for more than a decade synonymous with armed drones. But that now is changing, not because Beijing has built a better drone but because it has been willing to sell them to countries where the United States wouldn’t.

For years, advocates of U.S. arms sales bemoaned tight export restrictions on armed drones, which has allowed China to move in on a lucrative market while depriving American companies of valuable business. Jordan had originally requested to buy the Reaper, made by San Diego-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, but was turned down. When Beijing subsequently secured the deal, Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter lamented in late 2015 that “China is seizing the opportunity.”

More than two years later, China’s growing share of the armed drone market is on display. To date, only the United Kingdom, France, and Italy have bought an armed version of the MQ-9 Reaper, while other U.S. allies, including Jordan, are flying Chinese drones, such as the CH-4.

The United States now belatedly is trying to recapture the armed drone market. For years, U.S. companies were restricted from such sales, in part as a result of the Missile Technology Control Regime, an international pact that aims to curb the export of certain long-range cruise missiles and drones. (China is not a signatory to the agreement.)

But last month, the Trump administration, as part of its “Buy American” push, announced a new policy intended to loosen export restrictions on armed drones. In announcing the changes, Peter Navarro, President Donald Trump’s trade advisor, blasted “Chinese replicas” of American drones “deployed on the runways in the Middle East.” Overly restrictive policies had put the United States in danger of losing out on an estimated $50 billion international market for drones, according to Navarro. “The administration’s [unmanned aerial systems] export policy will level the playing field by enabling U.S. firms to increase direct sales to authorized allies and partners,” he said.

But the new export policy doesn’t appear to have made any immediate impact. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, which makes the Reaper, had a modest exhibit at SOFEX and was advertising only unarmed versions of its aircraft.

“We’re still in the process of evaluating the recent Export Policy announcement and its impact on potential sales,” a spokesperson for the company wrote in response to a question about potential sales. “At this point, it’s too soon to comment.”

And though SOFEX featured an entire pavilion for U.S. companies selling weapons, none, other than General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, appeared to be offering drones, let alone armed drones.

Even U.S. officials say it’s unclear how the new drone regulations will be implemented.

“I don’t know the answer — that’s relatively new — and I don’t even have the talking points on how we’re supposed to respond to that,” says Dave Dornblaser, the director of the Washington field office for U.S. Army Security Assistance Command, when asked at SOFEX about the new regulations. “I can tell you there is quite a bit of interest in UAVs.”

Even with the Trump administration reforms, it may ultimately be too late to capture an export market dominated by China, as well as Israel.

“The Chinese have made a lot of inroads into the market, and U.S. export policy has definitely helped them, because the U.S. has stayed out of a lot of potential markets,” says Philip Finnegan, the director of corporate analysis at Teal Group in Fairfax, Virginia. “While some areas might be filled by Israeli manufacturers who are very active, the Middle East is one where the Israelis aren’t active for obvious reasons. And so the Chinese have filled the void.”

The CH-4, whose resemblance to the iconic Predator is no accident, follows a long tradition of Chinese technology manufacturing, whether in cars or smartphones: Make it look like a name-brand Western equivalent, but build it cheaper and good enough to get the job done. (Amusingly, a video at the show advertising the CH-4 called it “one of the best” UAVs in the world, as in, not the best.) Analysts have even suggested, albeit without proof, that China pilfered U.S. technical information for its drone program.

China’s sales have been buoyed by developing countries looking to fight insurgencies, and one of the factors driving recent buys, including Iraq’s, has been the war on the Islamic State, which has also proved an advertising boon to the Chinese.

At the exhibit area for China’s Aerospace Long-March International Trade Co., the maker of the CH-4, a video promoting the company’s drones featured extensive footage released by the Iraqi military showing strikes on Islamic State fighters. The Iraq military has already conducted at least 260 strikes against Islamic State militants using the CH-4, with close to 100 percent accuracy, according to a Chinese-language article. (A Jordanian military officer told Foreign Policy that his country’s CH-4s, which are armed with Chinese AR-1 anti-tank missiles, similar to the American Hellfire, have not fired weapons in combat yet.)

Since China doesn’t disclose all of its international customers, it’s hard to know the full extent of its sales, but a video on display at the exhibit acknowledged Algeria, Nigeria, Jordan, Zambia, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, and Myanmar as customers.

Notably absent from that list is the United Arab Emirates, which reportedly received its first CH-4 last year. FP reported last month that the UAE used its Chinese drone to assassinate a Houthi leader in Yemen.

While the Americans are just now moving forward with selling armed drones, China has been going full steam ahead. The CH-4 — a medium-altitude, long-endurance UAV — is part of series of Rainbow drones produced by Aerospace Long-March International.

While the CH-4 physically resembles the American Reaper, it is not as capable. It does not, for example, have a satellite link, which means it must be operated within line of sight, which limits its range and battlefield utility. China’s newest drone, the CH-5, will have a satellite link.

Aerospace Long-March International was also marketing smaller drones at SOFEX, including its CH-901, a minidrone that the company calls a “suicide UAV.”

While eager to sell its products, the company is also wary of scrutiny. Company representatives at the show declined to speak to a reporter and refused to give business cards to another visitor, an American who introduced himself as a “policy advisor.”

Another Chinese company, called Shenzhen Precision Technology Co., based in Shenzhen City, was at SOFEX advertising its small combat drone that can shoot grenades. The 35-kilogram vertical takeoff and landing drone can stay aloft for 20 minutes and has a range of 8 kilometers.

Xue Kun, the company’s executive director, says it took him four years to design the drone, which he’s selling, along with the ground station, for $300,000 each. He calls the concept an “air force in a truck,” because three can be loaded into a specially designed carrying case attached to a vehicle.

“If you buy many, you can get a discount,” he says. “I can also produce them locally, in your country.”

He hasn’t sold any of his combat drones abroad yet — he says they are used now only by Chinese police — but he hopes his attendance at SOFEX, his first opportunity to display a mock-up of the drone at an international arms exhibition, would help drum up sales.

Operating Chinese drones rather than American ones offers both economic and political advantages for some countries. The Chinese drones are much cheaper — typically a quarter of the price of similar American systems. China also is less likely to dictate how other countries use them, whereas U.S. exports can come with restrictions.

The problem with allowing allies to buy Chinese drones is not just financial. As Douglas Barrie, a senior fellow at the U.K.-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, points out, when foreign countries buy American weapons, the U.S. government has the ability to exercise some control over how that technology is used. “It’s a balancing act, and it’s very difficult to get right,” he says of U.S. export law.

The Chinese approach to selling weapons, he says, is much more “transactional.”

Now that the export restrictions are being loosened, the United States does have the ability to compete for more international sales, but the problem is that many countries have already found what they need in Chinese drones. Now, Barrie says, those countries might simply ask themselves: ‘‘Is the requirement fulfilled? This Chinese stuff is quite good.”

And then, even when they buy more drones, those countries may simply stick with China. “Once you open the door,” Barrie says, “there’s no guarantee you can close it.”