Squadron of drones appeared on Chinese aircraft carriers?

The above images appear on Social Network Weibo recently, but it is not clear when it was taken, according to The Drive date 2.6. Including at least one photo of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flying above the deck.

Photos on Weibo show multiple drones aboard China’s Shandong aircraft carrier Screenshot The Drive

The photos showing the Shandong ship carrying the UAVs are remarkable, according to The Drive. At least two are clearly visible, but all seem to be commonly described as “hybrid” vertical take-off/landing designs.

In the photo, several UAVs are parked on the deck of the Shandong, three of which appear to have propellers mounted in front. A Chinese design that generally describes a front-mounted propeller UAV is JOUAV’s CW-20. This type of UAV has a length of nearly 1.8 m and a wingspan of 3.2 m, with a maximum take-off weight of just over 25 kg.

In April, Chinese officials announced that the Shandong ship began undergoing its first major maintenance period since the ship was commissioned in 2019. Satellite images show that the ship is still at at the port of Dalian City at least until May 26.

There is currently no information on the Chinese side’s response. The above information comes in the context of China about to launch its third aircraft carrier.

Earlier on May 31, the South China Morning Post A shipyard in Shanghai appears to be preparing to launch China’s third aircraft carrier and a source military news revealed this will take place on June 3.