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The W5000 is powered by a pair of Chinese-developed AEP100 turboprop engines.
An aerospace phenomenon starts in two weeks on the mouth of the Pearl River delta in Southeast China.
Airshow China comes Nov. 11-14 to Zhuhai, the stage for a biennial showcase of the country’s ever-expanding aviation and space industries.
And it is a sight to behold. No other event summons the magnitude of China’s aerospace ambitions than the 11 packed exhibit halls lining the static display apron on the Zhuhai airport.
CASIC and CASC, China’s space- and missile-oriented behemoths, anchor the western end of the main hall. Military aircraft specialist AVIC, radar house CETC and engine maker AECC hold down the opposite extreme with equal grandiosity.
In between, other giants, including Comac, stand with a vast collection of upstart and independent brands, including Shenzhen United Aircraft, Space Transportation and Sichuan Tengdun Technology.
As an export-oriented international event, Zhuhai also offers a rare venue to observe China’s military aircraft up close, especially the newest models. Though the AVIC J-31 prototype was first seen in 2014 (revealing a perhaps uncanny likeness to a two-engine version of the Lockheed Martin F-35), its operational successor, the carrier-based J-35, will be on display for the first time.
The world continues to wait for the first peek of the AVIC H-20, the stealth bomber that received official acknowledgment as a development program by the Chinese government in 2016. And the world probably must wait longer. No sign has appeared to signal that the H-20’s blockbuster unveiling is imminent.
But new capabilities will reportedly be on display. Over the weekend, a Chinese Weibo account leaked a full list of the official static display at Airshow China, supplementing the exhibitor list already posted on the event’s website.
In China’s system, the line between a commercial and military project is often blurry. And nowhere is that more apparent than in the realm of autonomous aircraft.
Stacked on display in between familiar sights, such as the AVIC Wing Loong II and GJ-11, will be a small but growing collection of autonomous cargo aircraft making their debuts at Zhuhai.
In official terms, the models—the Tengden Scorpion D and the Air White Whale W5000—represent commercial products, seeking to break open autonomous cargo delivery for China’s vast, internal logistics system. As a derivative of the military Scorpion B, the twin-boomed, four-engine Scorpion D proposes to lift cargo loads up to 1.5 tons. The fixed-wing, twin-engine W5000, meanwhile, is being developed to haul 5 tons of cargo.
The airshow debuts will add to China’s recent infatuation with civil logistics aircraft. Additional examples include the Tianmu Intelligent Technology TM-3, a 1,800-kg uncrewed, hybrid-electric cargo aircraft, and the AVIC HH-100, a 2-ton autonomous aircraft. Shenzen United Aircraft, meanwhile, offers the coaxial-rotor TD220 uncrewed helicopter in production.
Chinese industry describe these projects as focused on civil requirements, but there are also military uses. The U.S. Defense Department, for example, has several autonomous cargo aircraft concepts in the works, including the U.S. Air Force’s Next Generation Intra-theater Airlift proposal, the Marine Corps Aerial Logistics Connector program, the Navy’s Blue Water uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) and the Army’s Joint Tactical Autonomous Aircraft Resupply program. All of the projects are focused on solving the problem of resupplying isolated bases dispersed across the Pacific Ocean area during a war.
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