China's new generation solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), Caihong (CH), or Rainbow, has successfully run a live-ammunition test under extreme environmental conditions recently, said the Beijing Aerospace Propulsion Institute (No. 11 Institute) under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) on January 31.
The CH UAV project team told the Global Times in February that the enhanced variant of the CH-4 conducted a six-day intensive bombing test for the first time in Northwest China under extreme weather conditions including blizzards and darkness in January.
The new CH drone has a better loading and power supply capability, and due to its multiple mount points design, it can carry a mixture of weapons and can shoot different types of guided missiles under different weather conditions, meeting the standards of a surgical strike, said the research team.
For example, it can guide 50-kilogram cluster bombs in order to effectively complete missions including regional blockades and attacks on enemy airports. The 50-kilogram satellite-guided bombs can also deal a deadly blow on the enemy position from higher airspace, while the 100-kilogram satellite-guided weapon can launch surprise attacks on targets from more than 10 kilometers away.