CASC CH-7

CASC CH-7 History

At the 2018 Zhuhai Air Show, CASC (China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation) displayed a sub-scale model of the CH-7 stealth combat drone it is developing, designed to directly attack the enemy The Fang Airborne Early Warning and Anti-Aircraft Missile System Control (AEW&C/AWACS) platform has internal missiles within range. One of the company's private venture capital programs is primarily related to China's space ventures, and the aircraft represents a major advance in China's drone capabilities, particularly in flying-wing designs, which typically have a lot of aerodynamic properties. , and control challenges engineers.

The CH-7 certainly looks similar to several Western full-wing UAV designs, namely the Northrop Grumman X-47B carrier-based UAV (detailed elsewhere on this site). The aircraft takes the form of a "crank kite" and does not use any vertical plane.

It is believed to carry a turbofan engine of unknown size and power buried in the central section of the fuselage. The unit's intake is through a port located at the rear, and the exhaust is through a port at the rear of the hull. Retractable tricycle landing gear for ground operation.

Despite being advertised as "stealth," the aircraft will rely more on onboard equipment to achieve stealth than special designs and skin coatings. Structurally, the CH-7 has an overall length of 33 feet, a wingspan of 72 feet, and a total weight of 28,500 pounds.

No power plant selection has been made (2018).

In the Chinese scenario, the stealth aircraft would be able to safely enter enemy airspace and attack enemy AWACS platforms by firing anti-radiation missiles (ARMs) at the target. Multiple CH-7s can also work together to designate targeting or surveillance/reconnaissance sorties (by replacing weapons with dedicated mission equipment). In addition, the CH-7 will have the ability to attack ground-based radars with equal lethality.

UAVs will also have secure information communications to provide data and targeting information to accompanying manned aircraft carrying more wartime payloads. Other uses of this vehicle include anti-ship and delivery of precision-guided bombs.

An airworthy prototype is expected as early as 2020-2021, with extensive flight testing over the next decade. Mass production is planned for 2022 quite optimistically, with the potential for export sales.

The overall unrestricted approach to Chinese technology puts China at the forefront of a potentially lucrative global drone market over the next decade a market in which the U.S. and Israel typically dominate but restrict access to specific regions of the world and specific customers. Sales (mainly the Middle East) are restricted to the East).

Some of the dimensional and performance information found on this page is the author's estimate.

CASC CH-7 Specification

BASICS

MANUFACTURING

ROLES

DIMENSIONS

WEIGHTS

POWER

PERFORMANCE

ARMAMENT

VARIANTS