China Deploys Unmanned Helicopters for Maritime Surveillance

The AR-500 helicopters have a maximum speed of 150 kilometers per hour and can reportedly also be used for rescue operations.

China has started employing a pair of domestically-manufactured unmanned helicopters made by the Aviation Industry Corporation of China to patrol the Yellow Sea, a vast body of water that lies between the Chinese mainland and the Korean Peninsula.

According to local media reports, these AR-500 helicopters are 7.33 meters long, 1.58 meters wide and 2.43 meters high, with the CCTV news describing them as the “most advanced unmanned helicopter deployed in China's maritime system.”

Each helicopter can carry a payload of up to 75 kilograms, has a remote control range of 150 kilometers and a maximum flight speed of 150 kilometers per hour. The helicopter’s endurance range was estimated at 400 kilometers.

“The unmanned maritime helicopters can track and monitor illegal vessels with aerial photography equipment in the daily law enforcement activities, enabling rapid investigation and evidence collection to help the onshore and offshore law enforcement forces in handling maritime violations,” Global Times reports citing Wang Gang, director of the Command Center of the Weihai Maritime Bureau.

Wang also reportedly suggested that the AR-500 helicopters could be employed in rescue operations and used to track oil spills.