Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by Country, Part 3 Codexery

CASIC WJ

CASIC WJ series: modular UAVs for reconnaissance and attack.

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The CASIC WJ series is a family of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) developed by the 3rd Academy Hiwing (HW) of the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC), also known as HiWING Mechanical and Electrical Technology Corp. The series includes multiple models designed for reconnaissance, ground attack, and suicide attack roles, with some models incorporating modular payload systems and jet propulsion.

Background

The WJ-010 is an armed development of the unarmed CASIC HW-100 Sparrowhawk, sharing its layout. It uses a modular design to rapidly swap between an optical reconnaissance payload and a warhead, allowing it to function as either a scout or a suicide attack UAV. The WJ-100 Blade (Dao-Feng) is the latest model of the Blade series as of early 2015, sharing a twin-boom layout, high wing configuration, and tricycle landing gear with other Blade series members such as the CASIC HW-300 and CASIC SF-460. Its winglets are larger than those of earlier Blade models, and it is powered by a two-blade propeller driven by a pusher engine mounted at the rear of the fuselage.

The WJ-500 is a jet-powered UAV intended for targeting, reconnaissance, target damage assessment, and simulation of cruise missiles and aircraft. It has a cylindrical fuselage with an inlet atop the empennage and can be fitted with wing tip tanks on the main wing.

It made its public debut in November 2014 at the 10th Zhuhai Airshow. The WJ-600 A/D is a development of the CASIC HW-610 and CASIC HW-600 Sky Hawk (WJ-600), combining reconnaissance and ground attack capabilities in a single platform, with its name A/D standing for attack drone. Two WJ-600 A/Ds were spotted in a military parade in Turkmenistan on 27 October 2016, marking the first confirmed export.

The WJ-700, unveiled at the 2018 Zhuhai Airshow, is a medium-/high-altitude long-endurance (MALE/HALE) armed reconnaissance UAV with a maximum takeoff weight of 3,500 kg and an endurance of up to 20 hours. It has four underwing hardpoints and can carry CM-102 anti-radiation missiles, C-701 and C-705KD anti-ship missiles, and land attack munitions.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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