Drones could play key role in PLA’s ‘final unification war’ on Taiwan
- Chinese military magazine outlines how a People’s Liberation Army attack on the self-ruled island might unfold
- It says drones could be used to ‘assassinate enemy leaders’ and target mobile missile launchers and heavy weaponry
After launching “the final unification war”, the PLA would seek to “suppress the island of Taiwan in all directions – land, sea, air, space, electricity and the internet”, according to the article.
It said drones would be key, noting their advantages over manned aircraft and other weapons systems.
“Manned combat aircraft can only stay in the air for a short time, usually three to four hours, which is completely different from the 30 to 40 hours of large and medium-sized drones,” it said.
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Drones would also be the best way to attack smaller vessels, according to the article. “Long-endurance strike and reconnaissance drones like the GJ-2/11 and BZK-005C, TB-001 could carry out real-time surveillance and cooperate with attack helicopters to mount strikes against Taiwan’s smaller vessels.”
In addition, the PLA’s attack and reconnaissance drones could target Taiwan’s mobile missile launchers and radar vehicles and destroy heavy weaponry like its Thunderbolt-2000, according to the article. The multiple launch rocket system was designed to fend off amphibious assault landing craft and other PLA warships during an attack.
Mainland China and Taiwan split in 1949 at the end of a civil war when the Kuomintang was defeated by Communist Party forces and fled to Taipei. Beijing sees the island as part of China and has never ruled out the use of force to take control of it.
Oishee Majumdar, a specialist on unmanned systems and Asia-Pacific security analyst at Janes, noted that PLA drones were regularly entering Taiwan’s air defence identification zone “and it’s likely that such incursions will continue”.
“However, according to the information identified by Taiwan and Janes, most of these Chinese drones are conducting ISR operations – intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance,” Majumdar said.
“For combat abilities, drones can indeed attack important military installations, disrupt military operations and affect civilian lives. But we don’t have evidence so far showing Chinese drones are capable of doing this.”
Majumdar also said Taiwan could be expected to develop counter-drone capabilities.
Combat drones have also been used in the PLA’s intimidation campaign. According to media reports, they include the TB-001 long-endurance strike and reconnaissance drone, the BZK-005 and BZK-007 long-range reconnaissance drones, the KVD-001 tactical reconnaissance and damage assessment drone, and the WZ-7 reconnaissance drone.