The most dazzling new star at this year’s Zhuhai Air Show is none other than the Jiutian UAV, which made its debut. This drone has a maximum take-off weight of 16 tons, a maximum payload of 6 tons, can fly continuously for more than 12 hours, and has 8 hanging points and a modular belly mother cabin. Its various parameters far exceed the current mainstream reconnaissance and strike drones, and it has opened up a gap of at least one generation with other countries, including the United States.
Recently, several photos of the Jiutian UAV rolling off the assembly line at a factory were circulated online, proving that this drone has now been mass-produced and may even have entered military service. It is not a concept aircraft at all.
The size of the Jiutian drone is immediately apparent when compared to the workers. With its wingspan and length, it is completely an unmanned bomber. The bomb load of two Jiutian drones is the same as that of a H-6K. If the improved model is further enlarged, the H-6K will probably tremble.