China to Unveil Giant Sea Drone at Beijing Parade

During preparations for the Victory over Japan Day parade in Beijing, China has showcased for the first time a massive unmanned underwater vehicle.

The Defence Blog reported on this.

International experts believe the new underwater vehicle is China’s attempt to develop a counterpart to Russia’s Poseidon nuclear-powered unmanned underwater vehicle.

At present, no specific details or characteristics of the unmanned underwater vehicle have been revealed, except for its designation – AJX-002.

Meanwhile, the South China Morning Post described the weapon concept as one that would employ a disposable nuclear reactor to reach and maintain cruising speeds of more than 30 knots (about 35 miles per hour) for up to 200 hours.

Once expended, the reactor would detach and sink to the seabed, after which the drone could continue operating on battery power to carry out a conventional strike.

Meanwhile, Chinese nuclear scientist Guo Jian of the China Institute of Atomic Energy, in an article for the Journal of Unmanned Underwater Systems, noted that there were ‘substantial differences’ between the system under development and Russia’s Poseidon, although specific details were not disclosed.

He points out that the use of such a weapon as Russia’s Poseidon could provoke a nuclear war, which poses a global threat of annihilation, making its deployment unlikely. In contrast, their new underwater drone serves a completely different purpose.

“Due to its high flexibility and relatively low cost, this unmanned underwater drone with a nuclear power system can function either as a conventional combat unit or as a strike nuclear submarine, rather than as a nuclear missile,” explained Guo.

Despite the uncertainty, China plans to showcase a variety of weaponry at the parade that was previously unknown, thus demonstrating its ambitious plans to build a formidable force in the region.

Militarnyi previously reported that China had launched the research vessel Blue Whale, which was capable of operating underwater autonomously.

The 11-meter unmanned vessel, with a displacement of 12 tons, can reach speeds of up to 40 knots on the surface and remain largely undetected at depth for extended periods.

While submerged, it can remain stationary for over a month, similar to a stealthy nuclear submarine.