China Shows Off World's First Hypersonic Drone

A new video has revealed a remarkable first in hypersonic flight – an unmanned Chinese MD series aircraft being launched in near space from a high-altitude balloon, reaching a speed of Mach 7 before landing safely to be reused later.

The full video, released by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), showcases the trials of the MD series and the drone developers behind the aircraft. The team from the Institute of Mechanics (IMECH) at CAS, known as the “Qian Xuesen Young Scientist Task Force”, were the same specialists who achieved the first horizontal landing of the hypersonic drone in 2020.

Hypersonic flight is a field of intense global strategic competition in advanced aerospace technology.

The MD-22 – the latest known model in the series – was first unveiled at the 2022 Zhuhai air show. The aircraft boasts a maximum range of 8,000km (4,971 miles) and can carry payloads of up to 600kg (1,323 pounds), delivering substantial strategic capabilities.

The concept of near-space hypersonic flight was first proposed by Qian Xuesen, the founding father of China’s space programme. He envisioned aircraft that could operate in the range between conventional aircraft and satellites, requiring mid-air launches for unparalleled flexibility.

Flight trials of the MD series – known as a “wide-range vehicle” – have shown efficient performance at both high and low velocities, the team said. “We aim for the best. While our ideas are highly forward-thinking, they’re achievable in theory,” IMECH engineer Li Wenhao said in the video.The gruelling development process has included more than 30 design refinements to optimise models and improve testing. In 2020, an initial test failed due to a parachute deploying too soon. In May 2021, a second attempt was abandoned because of bad weather in the Gobi Desert.