Page 8 - ADT JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2023 Online Magazine

fixed-wing weapon weighs 13kg (including a 3.1kg warhead) and
can travel 85km.
ASIAN ACTION

China is a hotbed of UAV research, development and production. It
is no surprise, then, that the People’s Liberation Army fields loiter-
ing munitions, including one that is a facsimile of the Harpy and is
launched from a 6x6 truck. This becomes understandable consider-
ing that China imported the IAI Harpy in the 1990s. China Aerospace
Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) also produces the
1.5m-long CH-901/FH-901. Weighing 9kg, it has a flight radius of
15km and endurance of 1+ hour.

Taiwan has its own Harpy lookalike too. In 2019 it exhibited a semi-
trailer truck carrying twelve Chien Hsiang anti-radiation loitering
munitions, each with a claimed 100-hour loitering time. At that time,
Taipei announced it was investing USD2.54 billion over five years to
manufacture 104 Chien Hsiangs.

South Korea is another country investing heavily in UAVs and loitering
munitions. Indeed, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) exhibited its
Devil Killer way back in 2011, long before loitering munitions were a
thing. This weapon bearing a 25kg warhead could be launched from
an SUV. Efforts continue. KAI concluded a collaboration agreement
with IAI in March 2021, with the two partners “aiming to expand their
© Gordon Arthur long cooperation to market loitering munitions to Republic of Korea
Army requirements”.
detect and track targets.
The previous year, KAI released a promotional video showing a
Elsewhere, WB Group in Poland manufactures helicopter deploying four Green Dragon loitering munitions from
the 5.3kg Warmate that has a 15km range. These stub wing-mounted canisters. These munitions could perform recon-
Polish weapons are 1.17m long and carry a 1.4kg naissance missions, suppress enemy air defences or conduct strikes,
anti-personnel or anti-armour warhead. After with the operator sitting at a console aboard the helicopter. Clearly,
Warmates were delivered to Ukraine, includ- the integration of loitering munitions with helicopters is an import-
ing some that were crowdfunded, WB Group
improved the software based on feedback
from Ukrainian fighters. The company produced
around 500 Warmates last year, a figure set to
rise to 1,500 in 2023.

Turkey is making its mark on the international
arms scene, and it offers several loitering
munitions. STM has manufactured the 3.7kg
fixed-wing Alpagu since 2018, as well as the
7kg Kargu quadrotor with 5km range. In 2021,
the UN Panel of Experts on Libya reported
that Kargu-2s used an autonomous targeting
capability, without requiring data connectivity
between operator and the munition, in Libya.
STM vehemently refuted this claim. However,
it does raise the whole thorny issue of AI and
autonomy.

Generally, militaries will desire a man in the loop
before allowing any unmanned weapon to be
discharged.

Another Turkish company is Titra Teknoloji, which
designed the Deli for a national customer. This © AeroVironment
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