Taiwan Arms itself with Autonomous Attack Drone to Deter Chinese Invasion

Taiwan was inspired by American weapons that Ukrainian troops used to strike Russian troops. Photo: RITCHIE B TONGO/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Taiwan is developing a sophisticated autonomous strike drone that can hover over a target before striking it as it seeks to deter China from launching an invasion.

The aerial weapon will be capable of operating in both manual and manual modes. autonomous attacks, potentially giving it the ability to select a target and strike it without human intervention.

Most drones now require an operator to control them using a physical or virtual control panel.

Chi Li-ping, director of Taiwan's top weapons manufacturer the National Chung Shan Institute of Science and Technology, told South China Morning Post reports that soldiers will be able to change or abort a mission mid-flight if necessary.

“The Type 2 is a highly mobile munition that can be easily moved as its folding wings allow for efficient transportation,” the China Morning Post reported. — he said.

Tentatively named

The newspaper reported that the new drone was tentatively named Loitering Missile II due to its upgrade from the Loitering Unmanned Aircraft Type1.

The Type 1 was inspired by the American Switchblade 300 used by the Ukrainian military. to strike Russian forces.

Mr Chi said the larger Type 2 would be more capable than its smaller predecessor of hitting larger targets such as key installations.

“In addition, multiple layers of tubes can be installed on the launch platforms, allowing multiple munitions to be released simultaneously,” Mr. Chi said, adding that the drones can be used both during the day and at night.

Taiwan is located as it builds up its weapons stockpile amid worsening relations with China.

Beijing views self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province that should be reunited with the mainland. President Xi Jinping has said that goal will be achieved, using force if necessary.

Partial air supremacy

Taiwan has said it will not succumb to Chinese threats and has taken steps to strengthen its position in the event of a future conflict.

“Since the beginning of the war, Ukraine, which was previously considered to lack air supremacy, has skillfully used drones to create its own partial air supremacy,” a Taiwanese internal briefing was read in July.

In At the time, Taiwan had four types of drones and a fleet of only hundreds.

China, by contrast, had 50 different types of drones. types of drones and fleet size in the tens of thousands.