WIC Loong II drone from the AVIC.
Photographer: Mikhail Voskresenskiy / AP Images
Photographer: Mikhail Voskresenskiy / AP Images
After a dozen years of fighting the Islamic insurgent group Boko Haram, Nigeria is receiving several new weapons: a pair of Wing Loong II drones from China. The agreement is part of a growing number of state-owned sales Aviation Industry Corp. from China (AVIC), which exported dozens of aircraft. The United Arab Emirates used AVIC drones in the Libyan civil war, Egypt attacked the Sinai rebels with them, and Saudi-led troops deployed them in Yemen. The company’s drones “are now being tested in combat,” says Heather Penney, a colleague at the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, a think tank in Arlington, Virginia. “They managed to feed the lessons learned back into manufacturing.”
Nigeria receives the second generation of AVIC wings – the name means “pterodactyl” – which can fly up to 230 mph and reach up to 30,000 feet, carrying a payload of a dozen missiles. Since 2015, when AVIC introduced the new model, it has produced 50 for export and an unknown number for the People’s Liberation Army of China. And he’s working on even more advanced aircraft, such as a stealth fighter drone with a flying wing design similar to that of the American B-2 bomber. The drone program, combined with deliveries of fighter jets, trainers, transporters and assault helicopters, has propelled AVIC into the top ranks of the global arms trade. In 2019, it sold military equipment valued at $ 22.5 billion, according to the International Peace Research Institute in Stockholm (Sipri), placing it sixth in the world, behind five US companies.
AVIC drones have two major selling points: they are cheaper than comparable aircraft from US or Israeli manufacturers – the other primary manufacturers – and China doesn’t care much about how they are used, says Ulrike Franke, a politician at the European Council for External relationships. “China is willing to export armed drones to almost anyone,” she said. AVIC did not respond to requests for comment.
Combat drones delivered
By Chinese and American suppliers, 2010-2020
Excludes orders that have not yet been delivered.
In the last decade, China has delivered 220 drones to 16 countries, according to Sipri. This has led other nations to increase their capacity in the field, says Michael Horowitz, a professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania. Japan, South Korea and Belarus are developing drone technology. Turkey has provided drones that helped Azerbaijan defeat Armenia in last year’s Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Russia in January agreed to send drones to Myanmar and is working on longer-range models. Serbia and Pakistan say they intend to use purchases from China to create their own programs. “The armed proliferation of drones is inevitable because of Chinese exports,” says Horowitz.
The Chinese government rejects the accusation that it is fueling an arms race, saying it only aims to improve the defensive capabilities of its customers. And, unlike the US, they refrain from interfering in their internal affairs, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in a February press briefing. “We are cautious and responsible in arms exports,” she said. “This is totally different from what the United States is doing.”
Pushing Chinese drones is a challenge for President Biden as he tries to move beyond the Trump administration’s foreign policy. Last fall, Trump considered AVIC and its subsidiaries part of the Chinese military, restricting their access to US technology. But last summer he reinterpreted The missile technology control regime – a 1987 agreement signed by more than 30 countries that has long kept the lid on US drone exports – to allows the sale of many such aircraft.
Despite criticism from Democrats, Trump has agreed to sell 18 General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper drones to the United Arab Emirates. In November, the administration approved a $ 600 million deal to supply Taiwan with four harvesters; and the following month, Trump’s State Department informed Congress of the contract to sell four reapers to Morocco following the establishment of diplomatic relations with Israel. Although Biden said he is reviewing sales in the United Arab Emirates, all three offers are about to be completed.
Visitors watch Wing Loong unmanned aerial vehicles at an AVIC assembly plant in Chengdu, China’s Sichuan Province in 2018.
Photographer: Imaginechina / AP Images
AVIC is at the heart of China’s broader drive to develop its aerospace industry, both civilian and military. China Aerospace Science & Technology Corp. sold fighter drones to Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Serbia – the first time a European country has launched Chinese drones. China North Industries Group Corp. in November he completed the development of his Communist Party-controlled Golden Eagle helicopter drones Global Times The newspaper said it was “designed to meet the requirements of the arms trade.” Commercial Aircraft Corp. in China, 12% owned by AVIC, is developing an aircraft to compete with the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320. AVIC also has joint ventures with about 10 multinationals in China-focused civil affairs, such as aircraft components and avionics.
AVIC’s growing experience is bearing fruit in improved quality, says Pawel Paszak, director of the China Monitor program at the Warsaw Institute, a think tank in the Polish capital. Although its drones do not match the best deals from American and Israeli companies, they are increasingly competitive – and the price differential is significant: AVIC’s top drones run between $ 1 and $ 2 million per piece, compared with more than $ 15 million for a comparable American model. “Chinese drones may not be as good as American drones,” says Paszak. “But 15 drones instead of one and without any fuss about human rights? This is a good offer. ” “With Lucille Liu, Colum Murphy and Nick Wadhams.”
BOTTOM LINE –
AVIC sold drones and other military equipment valued at $ 22.5 billion in 2019, making it the world’s No. 6 arms exporter, behind only U.S. companies.