(ECNS) -- China's Qingqibing solar-powered drone, designed to fly up to 30 hours, completed its first flight Wednesday at an airport in northwest China, according to the 11th Research Institute of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.
Powered entirely by solar energy, the fully electric aircraft is designed for long flights, rapid deployment and simple ground support, the institute said.
The drone is 3.2 meters long, has a wingspan of 8 meters and a maximum designed flight time of 30 hours. Its modular design allows it to be quickly equipped with different mission payloads, including communications and remote sensing equipment.
The aircraft can be launched from a vehicle-mounted system, with ground preparations taking 20 minutes, allowing it to be deployed quickly, the institute said.
The institute said the drone is designed to be energy-efficient, low-cost and suitable for rapid mass production, and it expects the drone to fill a gap in China's commercial market for small and medium-sized, fully electric low-altitude aircraft designed for long-endurance, low-cost and wide-area operations.
Potential applications include long-distance pipeline inspections, inspections of major water projects, land surveying and natural resource surveys, rapid inspection in disaster-hit areas and wide-area monitoring, the institute said.
(By Zhang Dongfang)
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