Description
The CAIG Wing Loong can be also called the Chengdu Pterodactyl I. It's a Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance unmanned combat aerial vehicle. It was developed in People's Republic of China by the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group. The general idea of its creators was to provide a vehicle, that can be used as a surveillance and aerial reconnaissance platform.
General information
CAIG Wing Loong can be used as an unmanned combat aerial vehicle, as it can be fitted with air-to-surface weapons. According to the information provided by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group, the drone can be used to carry - among others - the YZ-212 laser-guided bomb, BA-7 air-to-ground missile, YZ-102A anti-personnel bomb. There are two versions of this device: number I and II plus a Chinese military version of it, called GJ-2.
Operators
At the moment, multiple countries are using the CAIG Wing Loong. Among them, we can find: China with 60 units of the drone, Egypt, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bangladesh and Uzbekistan. Each of the countries hold a different number of the vehicles.
Performance and basic information
The CAIG Wing Loong cannot carry any crew. It is powered by Rotax 914 turbocharged and is equipped with a three-bladed propeller. The wingspan of the vehicle is 14 m, the length of it 9.05 m, height is about 2.77 m and the weight is around 1100 kg.
The drone can move with a maximum speed of 280 km/h, within a range of 4000 km. Its endurance is about 20 hours and the service ceiling reaches 5000 m. The vehicle has a 1000 kilograms capacity, made for sensors.
Armament
The vehicle can carry multiple weapons, among which we can pinpoint: FT-9, FT-10, FT-7, GB7 and GB4 bombs, BRM1 and AKD-10 missiles.
