On December 23, 2018, at an airport in western China, the first successful maiden flight of the Wing Loong 1-D drone was achieved. This is China's first fully composite multi-purpose drone, which has achieved significant improvements in takeoff weight, ceiling, flight time, communication, internal loading, and external capabilities compared to the previous Wing Loong I.
In fact, since 2005, China has been engaged in the research and development of the Pterodactyl series of unmanned aerial vehicles, and now it has become a country with the world's advanced "reconnaissance and strike integrated" unmanned aerial vehicle research and development capabilities. As of the beginning of this year, more than 100 Wing Loong series drones have been delivered, setting a new record for China's drone exports.
In the field of the new generation of integrated reconnaissance and strike drones, the Chinese drone industry, represented by China's aviation industry, has begun to surpass the United States, "commented Defense News
In the late summer of September, in Chengdu, at the Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute of the Aviation Industry, Li Yidong, the chief designer of the Pterodactyl series unmanned aerial vehicles, spoke frankly about this. Through the efforts of scientific researchers, China's aviation industry has set its sights on the field of large, medium, and high-end unmanned aerial vehicles, and has indeed stood at the forefront of the world. However, there is still room for improvement and enhancement in terms of power performance, mission payload, weapon performance, and other aspects.
From Pterosaur I to II, and then to I-D, it appears that there is only a model change on the surface. Behind it, there are countless technological gaps that need to be filled and key technologies that need to be broken through. ”
With a friendly smile and simple attire, this chief designer can list from the attention that the Wing Loong I attracted in the foreign trade market, to the fact that the Wing Loong II had already received the largest overseas order in China's drone foreign trade history before its maiden flight, to the new record of the rapid release of the Wing Loong I-D.
But he couldn't forget that throughout the entire series of research and development, the team relied on independent innovation to forge a path. We cannot decorate our tomorrow with someone else's yesterday. All the technologies in the entire pterosaur series are independently developed by us. When we launched this project, we set the principle of independent innovation
Pterosaur soaring in the sky
Rooted in the development of technology and industry in China
In Li Yidong's view, the development of the Yilong series of unmanned aerial vehicles in the past 14 years is rooted in the foundation of China's overall technological and industrial development.
In 2005, when he began developing the pterosaur prototype, he described the situation as "unmanned, without money, without time". At that time, the wings of the first pterosaur came from gliders, and the brakes came from motorcycle brake pads bought in the biotech market
Perhaps the design is still ongoing here, while the production is underway there. With a team of more than ten people, they can hold multiple positions such as designer, craftsman, and test pilot. "Li Yidong does not find it difficult. Over the course of two years, the R&D team relied on "piecing together everything" and accumulated technology and experience through exploration in the third-generation J-10 project, breaking through key technologies such as autonomous takeoff and landing and flight, rapid target capture and automatic tracking, and automatic attack of unmanned aerial vehicles, and developing the first pterosaur unmanned aerial vehicle, achieving successful maiden flight and first target test,
Subsequently, there is a transition from achieving technological proficiency to industrialization of research and development. The success of a product not only requires technical success in the development process, but also needs to be tested by the market and recognized by customers. In this difficult process, as the chief designer, Li Yidong made a bold decision to completely overturn and start over in order to avoid some operational risks during the initial development.
This restart, including comprehensive redesign, involvement of all relevant professions, and production according to new processes... In the vast and complex project, with a solid technical foundation, the pterosaur drone went abroad for the first time, and the flight demonstration ended perfectly.
But at this point, users are not only concerned about flying, but also about the "hard skills" of the product - requiring target shooting to demonstrate performance. After the first failed shooting attempt, Li Yidong clearly remembered the foreign party's request for them to transport the plane away, "If they don't, they'll throw it into the sea
Finally, after arduous coordination and communication, the pterosaur team managed to secure another opportunity to perform, and with the success of their second performance, they welcomed their first global client.
This experience made Li Yidong realize clearly that customer needs are the starting point of innovation and the market.
Afterwards, the pterosaur team focused on the "first" of product development, design, and validation, the "last" of integration, flight testing, and service assurance. The front-end connected to the market and understood user needs, while the back-end delivered products to users, served users, and met their needs, forming a closed loop of demand fulfillment.
Under this market-oriented business model of resource allocation and collaborative sharing, the growth and development of the Pterodactyl series drones have always been vibrant. Nowadays, the pterosaur series unmanned aerial vehicles have three major systems. Among them, the flight tube system is equivalent to the human cerebellum, maintaining balance and mobility. The task system is the human brain that makes decisions, while the accusation system is equivalent to the external environment of the human being, which can input the environment in which they are located.
These three major systems are all our unique technologies, with a killer effect, "sighed Li Yidong." With these three systems, drones will be even smarter and more intelligent
In recent years, the powerful reconnaissance capability and hit rate of over 90% of pterosaur drones have won the trust of the market.
For Li Yidong, his biggest feeling about participating in the development of the pterosaur drone from a difficult start to becoming a banner is that these achievements are rooted in the development of our country's aviation industry technology, science and industrial capabilities. Of course, it also includes advances in other industries, and even many civilian technologies have provided significant support
Aviation serves the country
Several generations of aviation personnel have contributed their youth to the manufacturing of air force equipment
In fact, starting with difficulties and striving to catch up, becoming a flag, and the growth of pterosaurs are also a microcosm of the development of Chinese aviation.
In Chengdu, Sichuan Province, Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute of Aviation Industry is the cradle of the birth of the "Dragon" series fighters in New China. Over the past few decades, several generations of aviation professionals have contributed their youth and wisdom to the rapid development of China's air force equipment, including the Raptors (J-10 aircraft), Weilong (J-20), Xiaolong manned aerial vehicles, and pterosaurs unmanned aerial vehicles.
Li Yidong has been familiar with this place since childhood. He is a second-generation astronaut, and his mother used to be a researcher at a research institute. Growing up reading aviation magazines, he set his dream of becoming an aircraft designer in high school. After graduating from Beihang University's Aerodynamics program, he returned here to pursue his dream.
At that time, the chief expert of Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute, Song Wencong, as the chief designer of the J-10 aircraft, was leading the entire institute's design team to overcome the key project determined by the country - "Project 10". This was China's third-generation fighter jet with independent intellectual property rights and a monument in the history of Chinese aviation.
Li Yidong always remembers the figures of those difficult journeys, the process of breaking through and achieving from scratch. At the beginning of his work, he would always help his colleagues draw and experiment after completing their tasks, like a sponge absorbing all the nutrients around him. Until shortly after starting work, at the moment before my dream, I joined the research and development team of the new fighter jet and stayed there for decades.
In these years, from the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, when the country needed to tighten its belts and buy MiG-15s, to now when the independently developed JF-17, J-10, J-20, and pterosaur series are flourishing, all the efforts of aviation personnel have been poured into this transformation, and aviation serving the country has become a reality.
At present, as China's military drone technology has taken the lead in the world, as the chief designer of the Pterodactyl series, Li Yidong is more thinking about the challenges that the Pterodactyl family will face. "In the future, how should the Pterodactyl family go? We may be researching a comprehensive solution that requires both stealth and other capabilities to survive in stronger adversarial environments and play a greater role
