China’s new “mini drone carrier” signals a turning point in naval warfare — swapping costly supercarriers for swarming, expendable drone decks built to strike and survive.
This month, The War Zone (TWZ) reported that China has begun at-sea testing of its AR-500CJ uncrewed helicopter aboard a newly revealed vessel dubbed a “mini drone carrier”, marking a significant step in the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) naval drone integration efforts.
Footage aired by state-run CCTV-7 in October shows the AR-500CJ operating from a ship believed to have been launched in 2022 at the Jiangsu Dayang Marine shipyard. The vessel, approximately 100 meters long with a distinctive trapezoidal flight deck, is part of a growing fleet of open-decked platforms used for drone and electronic warfare training.
