A month after the emergence of satellite imagery that showed GJ-11 stealthy flying-wing uncrewed combat air vehicles (UCAV) in at least a semi-operational state, China has released the first air-to-air video of the drone — and, as far as we know, the first official imagery of any kind showing the real aircraft. China also revealed that the official People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) name for the GJ-11 is Mysterious Dragon, alternatively translated as Fantasy Dragon. This appears to have superseded the Sharp Sword name that was previously applied, and which likely referred to prototype and pre-production aircraft.
The development comes a little over a year after TWZ reported in detail on growing evidence of the GJ-11 moving ever closer to operational status.
The GJ-11 entered development more than a decade ago and is widely assessed to be designed to perform both penetrating air-to-surface strike and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions. It may well also be expected to take on other roles, including air-to-air combat and electronic warfare. UCAVs of this size have long endurance, much longer than crewed tactical jet counterparts, while still carrying a relevant payload.
The air-to-air footage and other clips of the GJ-11 appear toward the end of a nearly 30-minute video released by the PLAAF to commemorate the 76th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army. The video notably includes the GJ-11 flying in formation with a J-20 stealth fighter and a J-16D electronic attack aircraft. One sequence also shows, apparently for the first time, a J-20 launching a medium-range air-to-air missile, likely a PL-15, fired from its internal weapons bay.
Showing the drone aloft with these two crewed combat is notable and not just as they represent two of the most modern and capable designs in the PLAAF inventory. In particular, both the J-16 and (two-seat versions of) the J-20 have been considered as likely ‘airborne drone controllers’ for types like the GJ-11.
China certainly has a great interest in having drones work alongside crewed platforms, as well as to operate cooperatively, and potentially do so with a high degree of autonomy. As TWZ has highlighted for several years now, the two-seat variant of the J-20 would be an ideal candidate as an airborne drone controller.
Some observers have taken the footage as confirmation that the GJ-11 is now in operational service with the PLAAF. While the video alone is not enough to determine that the drone is in operational use, especially not in any truly meaningful way, it’s another sign that this milestone is fast approaching, if it hasn’t already been attained.
Last month, we reported on satellite imagery showing three GJ-11s at Shigatse Air Base, in China’s Tibet Autonomous Region, where they were present from August 6 through September 5. The appearance of the UCAVs at this very active dual-use military-civilian airport was a strong indicator that they were now in operational test, at least, if not operational service. In particular, the base is in a strategic position along China’s southwestern flank with India, close to some of the border areas that have seen sometimes violent skirmishes between the two nations.
A prototype of the GJ-11 was first flown in 2013, in a much less stealthy form. The design was then considerably refined, and a mockup of the new-look version appeared at a parade in Beijing in 2019. It now featured major improvements in terms of low observability, including a completely redesigned rear aspect with a stealthier exhaust.
Prior to being spotted at Shigatse, and now in the PLAAF video, the GJ-11 was primarily known through its appearances at various test facilities. Such locations have included the enormous and secretive base at Malan in Xinjiang province, where examples of the UCAV have been regularly seen flying for more than a year now. Mockups have also been included in parades and have been spotted at Chinese naval test and training facilities.
China clearly has aspirations to operate the drone, or a version of it, from aircraft carriers and big deck amphibious assault ships, and the continued work on a naval variant or derivative capable of doing this has led to a string of unofficial designations, including GJ-11H, GJ-11J, and GJ-21.
More recently, a navalized version of the drone appeared in flight, with its arrester hook lowered, as seen in the imagery below.
Whatever way the PLA intends to employ it, the GJ-11 further underscores just how seriously China is taking the development of flying-wing uncrewed aircraft, an area that is currently the beneficiary of heavy investment. As we have repeatedly discussed in the past, this approach is very much at odds with the U.S. military’s eschewing of such designs, with very little evidence of parallel activities, at least publicly. The puzzling case of America’s ‘missing’ UCAVs is something you can read more about in this past TWZ feature.
In the meantime, other countries are putting more resources into flying-wing UCAV programs, among them Russia, India, Turkey, and France.
Another Chinese stealthy flying-wing drone, the CH-7, has meanwhile been seen for the first time in the air, in unofficial footage captured from the ground. Compared to the drone when it was seen previously on the ground, the videos showing the drone in flight reveal that it has been fitted with additional outward-canted vertical tail surfaces. Attachment points for these tailfins appear to be present in previous imagery of the drone; likely, they are intended for testing purposes, as part of envelope expansion.
While the CH-7 remains generally mysterious, it is notably large and is another pointer toward China’s accelerated efforts to develop low-observable, long-endurance drones. The CH-7 appears likely to be tailored for ISR, but there have been claims that it will also undertake strike missions as a UCAV. Similar in configuration to the CH-7, but significantly larger, are two other flying-wing drones, both of which were spotted at Malan. In both cases, TWZ was first to report on these larger drones.
Combined, the new videos of the GJ-11 and the CH-7 reflect something that TWZ has long predicted, namely that China has invested very heavily in flying-wing drones, for both land-based and naval applications. In the case of the GJ-11, in particular, its path toward becoming a feature of regular PLAAF operations should come as no surprise, and it seems certain that other Chinese flying-wing drones and UCAVs will follow the same path.
Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com