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Merging air, land and sea swarms – the next frontier in China’s drone technology

CETC says mature formations of similar drones are the foundation for a combat network linking uncrewed assets across domains

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CETC says drone-swarm technology is an intelligent, distributed combat system. Photo: CCTV
Albee Zhangin Shanghai

If mastering drone-swarm technology were not difficult enough, China is now tackling the more complex task of integrating uncrewed land, sea and air platforms, according to the country’s leading developer in the field.

In an article posted on China Electronics Technology Group Corporation’s (CETC) social media account on Sunday, the company’s Intelligent Technology Research Institute said drone-swarm technology was not merely “many drones flying together”, but an intelligent, distributed combat system in which aircraft communicated, coordinated, made local decisions and collectively generated capabilities.

China had made advances in developing and deploying swarm systems made up of similar drones, the institute noted. The country’s longer-term goal, however, was a combat network capable of coordinating different uncrewed platforms across the entire operational area and in multiple domains.

“Drone swarms are a key force for adapting to complex, intelligent future warfare and for driving changes in how modern wars are fought,” the article’s authors wrote.
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