The BZK-005 high-altitude, long-range UAV is a reconnaissance aircraft designed by Beijing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics and Harbin Aircraft Industry (Group) Co., Ltd. It is used by the

PLA Navy The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN; ), also known as the People's Navy, Chinese Navy, or PLA Navy, is the maritime service branch of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAN traces its lineage to naval units fighting during the Chines ...

and

PLA Air Force The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF; ), also known as the Chinese Air Force (中国空军) or the People's Air Force (人民空军), is an aerial service branch of the People's Liberation Army, the regular armed forces of the Peo ...

Development

The BZK-005 was unveiled in Zhuhai International Airshow 2006, where video and models were demonstrated to the public regarding this UAV.

Design

BZK-005 has a few stealth features integrated into its design.Wong, Edward. (2013, September 21). "Hacking U.S. Secrets, China Pushes for Drones," ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', p.A1 ff. It is believed that a satellite data link antenna is held in its large upper body dome. Under the body there is an optic-electric sensor system which is believed to be its main sensor. It is expected that BZK-005 has cruising speed of around 170 km/h, service ceiling 8,000 m, max takeoff weight is around 1,200 kg, max payload over 150 kg.

Variants

BZK-005: unarmed reconnaissance version. BZK-005C: Developed from original BZK-005 and optimized aerodynamic structure and electronic system with attack and reconnaissance capability. It can equipped with booms or missiles with more than 300 kg payload. First revealed by Chinese state media on 11 November 2018.

Service history

The BZK-005 is in service with the People's Liberation Army Navy and People's Liberation Army Air Force. It may be known as "Sea Eagle" in PLAN service and "Giant Eagle" in PLAAF service. In August 2011, a BZK-005 crashed into a farm field close to

Xingtai Xingtai (), formerly known as Xingzhou and Shunde, is a prefecture-level city in southern Hebei province, People's Republic of China. It has a total area of and administers 4 districts, 2 county-level cities and 12 counties. At the 2020 censu ...

, He Bei province. Photos of the wreckage were posted on various Chinese internet websites. In April 2019, the BZK-005 was confirmed to be used by the Chinese military in conducting maritime surveillance over the East China Sea. The UAV was intercepted by the

Japan Air Self-Defence Force The , , also informally referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the air and space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and electronic warfare. ...

in a scramble alert after violating Japanese air space. In August 2021, the BZK-005 was spotted over the East China Sea alongside two Y-9s. It was speculated to be an upgraded variant, "specifically configured for wide-area intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions with an undernose synthetic aperture radar (SAR) radome – possibly housing a Ku-band D3010 SAR system with a dual-mode SAR/ground moving target indicator (GMTI) capability – and a mid-mounted ventral electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) turret."

Operators

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People's Liberation Army Air Force The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF; ), also known as the Chinese Air Force (中国空军) or the People's Air Force (人民空军), is an aerial service branch of the People's Liberation Army, the regular armed forces of the Peo ...

: 84 units *

People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force The People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force (PLANAF; ) is the naval aviation branch of the People's Liberation Army Navy. Overview Historically, the PLANAF's main role has been to provide the navy's warships with air defense coverage. Part of ...

: 21 units

Specifications

References

{{Chinese Military Aircraft Unmanned military aircraft of China 2000s Chinese military aircraft BZK-005 2010s Chinese military aircraft People's Liberation Army Navy