Chinese Heavy Assault Carriers Deploy Large New Helicopter Drones

One of China’s Type 075 Class heavyamphibious assault ships has begun to deploy a new class fo unmanned helicopter, with the aircraft seen parked on the flight deck during outfitting work. Chinese shipyards have launched two Type 075 Class ships over the past ten months, each displacing approximately 40,000 tons, and a third is currently nearing launch. The ships are of comparable size to the French nuclear powered aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, and a number of analysts have observed that they could be used to deploy specialised fixed wing aircraft with vertical landing capabilities similarly to how the U.S. Navy’s Wasp and America Class ships deploy Harrier II and F-35B aircraft. Flight decks are thought to accommodate 20-30 aircraft, which are expected to include transport, attack and anti submarine warfare helicopters to allow the Type 075 to operate in a wide range of roles. Testing new unmanned helicopters could be a prelude to sea trails, although it is unclear whether the newly observed aircraft is intended for an attack role or for reconnaissance. The helicopters are estimated to measure approximately 10 meters long and three meters tall - making them quite large for unmanned vehicles. China has emerged as a world leader in drone technologies in recent years, with some of its best known new designs being the WZ-8 hypersonic surveillance drone and GJ-11 unmanned stealth bomber. It remains uncertain how many classes of unmanned aircraft the Type 075 Class ships will be expected to deploy.