GJ-X Giant Stealth Drone
The GJ-X represents what is likely China's most ambitious unmanned aerial vehicle development to date, though significant uncertainty surrounds both its designation and operational purpose. The aircraft was first revealed through commercial satellite imagery of China's Malan test base in Xinjiang province in September 2025, where analysts identified a large flying-wing platform with an estimated wingspan of approximately 42 meters. Malan/Uxxaktal at 42°10'51"N 087°11'11"E was home of the PLAAF's 178th UAV Brigade. On October 19, 2025, video footage circulating on Chinese social media appeared to show this aircraft, or one with a nearly identical configuration, conducting flight operations for the first time. The grainy footage depicted the aircraft taxiing, taking off, and performing low-altitude circuits before landing, providing the first public confirmation that at least one prototype has achieved flight status.
The physical characteristics of the aircraft are assessed with moderate to high confidence based on satellite imagery and video analysis. The wingspan of roughly 42 meters places it in the same size category as the United States' B-21 Raider stealth bomber, making it exceptionally large for an unmanned platform. Some sources have claimed the wingspan exceeds that of the B-21, but analysts consider this unlikely. The aircraft's gross takeoff weight is estimated to fall between 20 and 30 tons, suggesting a payload capacity of up to 4 tons, though these figures remain analytical assessments rather than confirmed specifications. Chinese sources report its maximum takeoff weight is expected to exceed 50 tons, its internal weapons bay capacity may reach 15 tons, and its maximum internal fuel range may exceed 10,000 kilometers. Such parameters mean that it can carry large cruise missiles, and even large hypersonic ballistic missiles such as the " Jing Lei-1 ," to carry out intercontinental strike missions, possessing strategic nuclear strike capability. The design employs what observers describe as a "cranked kite" flying-wing planform, characterized by sharply swept wings and a blended fuselage optimized for reducing radar cross-section.
A small, off-center hump visible above the aircraft's rear section is assessed to indicate a twin-engine configuration with recessed exhaust ports designed to minimize infrared signature. The dual-engine design not only provides strong power but also improves mission reliability. Some analysts believe it may be equipped with the WS-18 turbofan engine. While this engine's thrust isn't particularly outstanding, its advantages lie in its small size, high reliability, and mature maintenance, making it ideal for drones requiring long-duration flight. Thanks to its excellent aerodynamic characteristics with a lift-to-drag ratio of around 25, even with its large size, it can achieve low fuel consumption and long loiter time, estimating its combat radius to be over 5000 kilometers.
Video footage and satellite images reveal split rudders positioned as outboard control surfaces, a feature common to flying-wing designs like the American B-2 Spirit. The "split rudder" on the outer side of the wing is key to the attitude control of the flying wing UAV. By differentially deflecting different control surfaces, it solves the directional stability problem caused by the tailless design. The "eccentric small protrusion" on the back of the fuselage is most likely the external outline of the internal engine nacelle, indicating that it may adopt a dual-engine configuration.
One of the more intriguing observable features is the aircraft's counter-shaded paint scheme. The underside appears to incorporate darker patterns that roughly approximate a conventional aircraft's fuselage and wing configuration. This technique, used historically on various military aircraft, is designed to visually obscure the aircraft's true shape when viewed from below at altitude. Whether this represents operational camouflage or an artifact of the coating installation process remains uncertain, though the deliberate nature of the patterning suggests the former. Observers who witnessed the October flight described the aircraft as notably quiet, with minimal visible exhaust plumes or noise signatures, characteristics consistent with advanced stealth-oriented propulsion design and acoustic dampening measures. The aircraft's construction almost certainly incorporates radar-absorbing materials, seamless engine inlets, and carefully designed panel edges to scatter electromagnetic energy across multiple frequencies, though the specific materials and techniques remain unknown.
The designation "GJ-X" is itself unofficial, coined by Western defense analysts and aviation journalists tracking Chinese military aviation developments. The Chinese government has not acknowledged the aircraft's existence, provided any official designation, or released specifications. This silence may reflect deliberate strategic ambiguity, a pattern consistent with Chinese military transparency practices that tend to reveal sufficient information to signal capability without providing detailed technical data that might aid adversary threat assessments. The lack of official information has led to significant debate within the defense analysis community regarding the aircraft's intended operational role.
Three primary mission profiles are considered most probable, though these are not mutually exclusive. The reconnaissance role is assessed by some analysts as the most overlooked yet plausible possibility. In this capacity, the GJ-X would function similarly to the United States' rumored RQ-180 program, serving as a high-altitude, long-endurance stealth platform designed to penetrate heavily defended airspace for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions. Such a platform could monitor broad expanses of the South China Sea, approaches to Taiwan, and other areas of strategic interest while remaining difficult to detect and track. The aircraft's size and assessed endurance characteristics would support extended operational periods over distant areas.
The unmanned combat air vehicle interpretation envisions the GJ-X as a strike platform capable of delivering precision-guided munitions, stand-off anti-ship missiles, or advanced cruise missiles against high-value targets. The estimated 4-ton payload capacity would accommodate substantial weapons loads if housed in internal bays designed to maintain stealth characteristics. Some military experts speculate that it can also cooperate with stealth fighters such as the J-20 to act as an "external weapons bay," making up for the J-20's shortcoming of having a small weapons bay and increasing the overall firepower density.
Some analysts have suggested the platform could even serve as a nuclear delivery vehicle, potentially addressing perceived gaps in China's air-based strategic deterrent while the long-delayed H-20 stealth bomber remains in development. However, using an unmanned platform for nuclear weapons delivery introduces complex command-and-control and political considerations that may limit this application.
Many Chinese observers considered the "GJ-X" to be an "unmanned version of the H-20 bomber". Firstly, it's due to its massive size, extremely long range, and enormous payload. From an operational perspective, it's highly similar to a strategic bomber, only without the pilot's cockpit. Secondly, it possesses superior stealth capabilities, enabling it to undertake deep-sea strike missions behind enemy lines, conducting unmanned infiltration, precision bombing, or electronic jamming operations in high-risk areas.
When carrying out missions, the "GJ-X" can penetrate deep into enemy territory to complete bombing missions, which overlaps with the strategic strike mission of the H-20. Moreover, its unmanned design eliminates the need to consider pilot safety issues, allowing it to perform more dangerous missions and completely replace the H-20 in many mission scenarios.
A third interpretation positions the GJ-X as a multi-role platform capable of adapting to various mission sets. Thanks to its reconnaissance capabilities, it can also serve as a stealthy tanker or communication relay node, providing long-range support to stealth fighter groups and forming a completely new combat mode. The aircraft could potentially operate as an electronic warfare platform, carrying specialized equipment for signals intelligence gathering, communications jamming, or radar suppression. It might also function as a "loyal wingman" operating in coordination with manned fifth-generation fighters like the J-20, performing target designation, electronic jamming, or serving as a decoy to protect piloted aircraft during penetrating strikes. The integration of such operations would require sophisticated data links and coordination systems, capabilities China has been actively developing but whose maturity remains difficult to assess from open sources.
What remains definitively unknown is considerable. The aircraft's actual operational range and endurance can only be estimated based on size and assumed fuel fraction. Claimed figures of over 7,000 kilometers range and 15-20 hours endurance appear plausible given the platform's dimensions, but these remain unverified assessments. The specific engine type powering the aircraft is unknown, though the twin-engine configuration suggests the use of existing Chinese turbofan designs, possibly derivatives of engines developed for manned combat aircraft. The sophistication of the aircraft's sensor suite, the degree of autonomous operation it can sustain, and its integration with broader Chinese military command and control networks are all areas of significant uncertainty. Whether the aircraft incorporates artificial intelligence for autonomous decision-making, the extent of human oversight required during operations, and how it would coordinate with other platforms remain open questions.
The aircraft's developmental lineage can be traced with reasonable confidence to China's earlier stealth drone programs, particularly the GJ-11 "Sharp Sword," which was publicly revealed in 2019. The GJ-11 features a much smaller 14-meter wingspan and approximately 2-ton payload capacity, making it suitable for tactical missions but lacking strategic reach. The dramatic scale increase represented by the GJ-X indicates a deliberate transition from tactical unmanned systems to strategic-level platforms capable of operating across vast distances. The aircraft also bears some resemblance to the CH-7 drone displayed at the Zhuhai Airshow, though significant design differences suggest they represent distinct programs or evolutionary branches rather than variants of a single design.
This was not China's largest unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). According to previous satellite images of a Chinese base, China actually possesses an even larger stealth flying-wing UAV. This mysterious UAV had a wingspan of up to 52 meters, very close to the 52.4-meter wingspan of the American B-2 bomber. Although there had been no news of it flying, its size alone is enough to demonstrate China's strong R&D capabilities in the field of drones. Its massive fuselage suggests that it may have a larger payload, longer range, and stronger combat capabilities, and may play a key role on a broader strategic level in the future.Malan Air Base, where the aircraft was first observed, serves as China's primary facility for testing advanced aerospace systems. The isolated location in Xinjiang's remote desert terrain provides operational security and extensive airspace for flight testing. The facility has historically hosted tests of reconnaissance drones, hypersonic vehicles, and experimental manned aircraft, making it the logical location for validating a platform of the GJ-X's significance. The appearance of the aircraft at Malan, followed relatively quickly by apparent flight testing, suggests the program had already progressed through substantial ground testing and systems validation before emerging in publicly available satellite imagery.
The strategic implications of the GJ-X are assessed to be significant, though their precise impact depends heavily on the aircraft's ultimate operational role and the numbers produced. If fielded as a reconnaissance platform, it would provide China with persistent surveillance capabilities over areas previously difficult to monitor due to distance or air defense coverage. As a strike platform, particularly if produced in substantial numbers, it could complicate defensive planning for the United States and regional allies by adding another layer of sophisticated threats that must be detected, tracked, and potentially engaged. The lower operating costs typically associated with unmanned systems compared to manned bombers could enable China to acquire and operate more platforms for a given budget, potentially achieving numerical advantages in certain scenarios.
The GJ-X's emergence occurs within a broader context of rapid Chinese advancement in military aviation. The past year alone has witnessed the first flights or public revelations of multiple advanced designs, including the J-36 heavy stealth fighter and the J-XDS advanced tailless fighter, suggesting an accelerating development tempo across multiple programs. This pattern indicates substantial resources being directed toward next-generation aerospace capabilities and a maturing industrial and technological base capable of producing sophisticated platforms across various categories simultaneously.
Critical uncertainties remain regarding when the GJ-X might achieve operational status, if indeed it progresses beyond testing. Initial operational capability, if achieved, would likely occur in the late 2020s or early 2030s, though this timeline depends on the success of ongoing flight testing, the resolution of any technical issues that emerge, and production decisions by Chinese military leadership. Whether multiple prototypes exist, how extensive the flight test program will be, and whether the design will undergo significant modifications based on test results are all unknown. The decision to allow video footage of the flight to circulate on Chinese social media, rather than suppressing it entirely, may indicate a deliberate choice to signal capability, though this interpretation itself involves analytical judgment about Chinese intentions.
What can be stated with confidence is that China has successfully developed and flown a very large stealth unmanned aircraft representing a significant technological achievement. Beyond that confirmed fact, much about the GJ-X—its true designation, precise capabilities, intended operational employment, and strategic significance—remains subject to analytical assessment with varying degrees of confidence rather than definitive knowledge.
