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Land-attack Cruise Missiles<br />
The Winglong/Pterodactyl 1 MALE UAV is perhaps China’s most-established UAV.<br />
Launched in May 2005, a UAV prototype was displayed at the 2008 Zhuhai Airshow,<br />
tested in 2008, validated with weapons beginning in 2009, cleared for export in June 2009,<br />
and redesigned significantly by 2010. Reportedly equipped with a 100-hp (horsepower)<br />
reciprocating engine, it has a 1,150 kg maximum take-off weight, a 200 kg payload, a<br />
5,000 m operational altitude, and 20-hour endurance. It is equipped with a Ku-band<br />
sitcom antenna and armed with 2 HJ-10 (ADK-10) 50 kg laser-guided antitank missiles.<br />
CASC’s CH-3/PW-3 UCAV is currently in production and has been approved for<br />
export. The CH-3/PW-3, unveiled at the 2008 Zhuhai Airshow, is propeller-driven with a<br />
reciprocating piston engine that allows for a service ceiling of 5 km, 12-hour endurance,<br />
and 2,398 km maximum range. It possesses an S-band data link and 60 kg maximum<br />
payload. This UCAV is armed with 2 AR-1 semiactive laser-guided missiles and is optimized<br />
for low-to-medium close air support missions. The Chinese press reported in<br />
October 2009 that the CH-3/PW-3 has received an export order; it may serve as an export<br />
competitor of the Winglong/Pterodactyl 1. 78<br />
The WJ-600/A MALE UAV has both turbojet (-600) and turbofan (-600A) versions.<br />
This jet-engined versatility distinguishes it from most other Chinese UAVs. Developed<br />
and produced by CASIC, it was first displayed at the 2010 Zhuhai Airshow and has subsequently<br />
been delivered to the PLAAF. Optical reconnaissance, synthetic aperture radar<br />
(SAR), electronic warfare, and target simulation payload options appear to optimize the<br />
WJ-600/A for high-speed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and strike.<br />
Armed with 2 KD-2/TB1 ASMs and a ZD1 laser-guided bomb, the WJ-600/A has an<br />
estimated service ceiling of 10 km, a maximum speed of 600 km/h, and an endurance<br />
of 6 hours. 79<br />
The ASN series, developed by Xi’an Northwestern Polytechnical University ASN<br />
Technology Group Company, includes more than a dozen designs, at least seven of which<br />
have been approved and some of which have been produced in small numbers. Leading<br />
Xi’an’s series of tactical UAVs, and one of the few that is armed, the ASN-209 Tactical<br />
UAV System is a medium-altitude, medium-endurance (MAME) UAV. Marketed by<br />
CATIC, the ASN-209 has both civil and military applications. It can be outfitted with<br />
a variety of military payloads weighing up to 50 kg including SAR, electro-optical EO<br />
sensors, multifunction, ground moving target indication (GMTI), electronic intelligence<br />
(ELINT), electronic warfare (EW), ground target designation (GTD), and communications<br />
relay payloads. Propeller-driven and powered by a piston engine, the 320 kg UAV<br />
has a maximum speed of 180 km/h, a cruising speed of 141 km/h, a service ceiling of<br />
5 km, an operational radius of 100 km, and 10-hour maximum endurance. Guidance<br />
and control are likely autonomous. It engages in parachute recovery and skid landing. 80<br />
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