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PLA shows first footage of Chinese GJ-11 drone working with crewed J-20 fighter

Military promotional video is the first time China has publicly shown its manned-unmanned teaming technology

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China’s PLA Air Force has released video footage of its stealth attack drone GJ-11 flying alongside and linking with its J-20 fighter jet. Photo: Weibo/人民空軍
Alcott Weiin Beijing
The Chinese air force has released video of its GJ-11 stealth attack drone flying alongside and linked to the J-20 fighter jet in what is the first footage of the country’s crewed and uncrewed aircraft working together.

The footage appeared in a promotional video released by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force on Tuesday to mark the 76th anniversary of its founding.

It shows the drone flying in formation with the J-20, China’s most advanced fighter jet, as well as the J-16D fighter, a variant of the J-16 with a focus on electronic warfare. The GJ-11 was flying in front of the other two aircraft, highlighting its role in getting closer to targets than manned fighters.
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The new drone in the promotional video is code-named Xuanlong 08. A fighter pilot in the video, code-named Weilong, says: “Weilong 01 received, already collaborating with Xuanlong.”

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Weilong is a nickname for China’s J-20 fifth-generation fighter jet. The air force’s social media post containing the footage was captioned “GJ-11 flight debut”.

It is the first time China has publicly shown its manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) technology.

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In 2022, a plan for MUM-T involving J-20s was revealed when state broadcaster CCTV showed animation of a J-20 controlling a formation of stealth drones to execute strikes. It showed a twin-seat variant of the J-20 – a design believed to accommodate a second pilot to control drones in the formation.

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