Chinese armed drones now flying across Mideast battlefields

FILE – In this Oct. 10, 2015, file photo, Iraqi Defense Minister Khaled al-Obeidi, center, inspects a first Chinese drone to be used by the Iraqi Air Force before sending it to bomb Islamic State group positions at an airbase in Kut, 160 kilometers (100 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq. Across the Middle East, countries locked out of purchasing U.S.-made drones due to rules over excessive civilian casualties are being wooed by Chinese arms dealers, who are world’s main distributor of armed drones. The sales are helping expand Chinese influence across a region crucial to American security interests and bolstering Beijing’s ambitions of being a world leader in high-tech arms sales. (AP Photo, File)

 

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — High above Yemen’s rebel-held city of Hodeida, a drone controlled by Emirati forces hovered as an SUV carrying a top Shiite Houthi rebel official turned onto a small street and stopped, waiting for another vehicle in its convoy to catch up.

Seconds later, the SUV exploded in flames, killing Saleh al-Samad, a top political figure.

The drone that fired that missile in April was not one of the many American aircraft that have been buzzing across the skies of Yemen, Iraq and Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001. It was Chinese.

China Unveils New ‘Dark Sword’ Drone

(Photo Credit: Chinese Social Media & Pakistan Defense Ministry)

 

This is a substantial leap forward for the People’s Liberation Army in aviation technology.

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According to a report published over the weekend by the SouthFront website, the Chinese government has been experimenting on a number of designs to increase speed, maneuverability, and stealth. Dark Sword, however, is “qualitatively” different that previous People’s Liberation Army designs:

China in race to overtake the US in AI warfare

A Chinese-made CH-5 reconnaissance and combat drone and its compatible missiles at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai city in south China’s Guangdong province on November 2, 2016.

 

Beijing is pushing hard to integrate artificial intelligence and autonomous weapons – robotic arms capable of thinking and acting at the speed of light

Earlier this month Chinese supreme leader Xi Jinping met with senior military scientists as chairman of the all-powerful Central Military Commission.

During the meeting, the Chinese leader was photographed at the PLA Academy of Military Sciences shaking hands with Major General Li Deyi, a leading authority on artificial intelligence, or AI, and a key figure in the Chinese military’s effort to overtake the United States in the emerging field of advanced weapons.

The meeting between Xi and the military experts garnered little public attention.

READY FOR WAR: China unveils ‘world’s most powerful drone’ armed with terrifying high-tech missiles and a bombing range of 12,500 MILES

CH-5 was revealed at Chinese military airshow

 

Latest show of force comes just one day after country’s new stealth fighter jet revealed

CHINA has unveiled a terrifying new drone hailed as the world’s deadliest unmanned combat aircraft.

With a range of up to 12,500 miles, the CH-5 can fly further than any other to carry out spying and bombing missions over several days.