Beijing: China has successfully tested its first stealth combat drone, state media said Friday, citing online photos of an aircraft resembling a shrunken US B2 bomber and hailing the advance toward Western-level technology.
The test flight of the “Sharp Sword” unmanned aircraft is another step in China’s years-long military build-up, with its defence spending now the second highest in the world and growing by double-digit percentages each year.
It comes weeks after Tokyo said a drone had flown near East China Sea islands claimed by both it and Beijing, ratcheting tensions between the rivals up another notch.
Beijing is steadily building its military muscle and unveiled its first stealth fighter, the J-20, in early 2011, though it is not expected to enter service until 2018.
China’s first aircraft carrier – a refurbished vessel purchased from Ukraine and named the Liaoning – went into service in September 2012, but is not expected to be fully operational for several years.
State broadcaster CCTV, citing eyewitnesses, said on its international channel that the test flight lasted 20 minutes on Thursday afternoon in the southwestern city of Chengdu. The flight “implies that China has made the leap from drones to combat drones”, it said, calling it the move of “major significance”.
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