Public opinion is largely skeptical, viewing the Jiu Tian mothership as more of a science fiction concept than a real military advancement. Many express disbelief or amusement, comparing it to fictional media and questioning its practicality and effectiveness. Concerns are prevalent about it being a massive target or another propaganda tool rather than a serious threat.

China

US Military

What is this Arsenal Bird from Ace Combat?

Thosecrackers

When is the US finally going to launch its fleet of attack blimps?

alwaysfatigued8787

Humans are always so clever when figuring out how to kill each other.

LameDuckDonald

As a huge Ace Combat fan with this username, I'm torn between making the two obvious references...

starcraftre

[Carrier has arrived](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vj37yeQQHg&amp;ab_channel=P0K3Yrev1C)

Wooden-Practice8508

Iceykitsune3

Classic movie villain mistake, a mothership. You destroy the mothership and all the baby drones just die.

dark_rabbit

I've seen this one. Steve Rogers ends up crashing it to save America.

RD_Life_Enthusiast

Day_of_Demeter

antilochus79

Far_Out_6and_2

DreadSeverin

HeavyArmsJin

SHITBLAST3000

It seems China's launch of it's drone mother ship is still a bit off if all they have to show for it is a low poly animation where it totally ignores crosswinds set to hokey Chinese patriotic music and a "structural assembly".

I love how in the animation the drones stay on the same y axis of the plane even though the plane is moving forward and the drones are moving to the side. Take a closer look at where the drones come out in relation to the wing and what is mounted on it, the picture of the structural assembly will confirm things.

DissKhorse

I don't think I understand the use case for this. It sounds scary but it doesn't get within 200 miles of a hardened target.

rvaducks

geraltoftakemuh

We are not ready for this future. Everyone gets a drone. Terrifying 

sir_racho

Between this and a aircraft carrier, which one would be more scarier

sengir0

Voidfang_Investments

China went straight to building a Stargate to make their Carriers without having to upgrade their Nexus.

PresentationUnited43

Sitruc9861

That sounds like an incredibly expensive slow moving target.

TheLuo

[looks like the US Marines will gonna have fun with these](https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=956c91c6efbdf948&amp;rlz=1C1CHBD_enPH1117PH1117&amp;q=Marine+Air+Defense+Integrated+System&amp;udm=2&amp;fbs=ABzOT_CWdhQLP1FcmU5B0fn3xuWpA-dk4wpBWOGsoR7DG5zJBjLjqIC1CYKD9D-DQAQS3Z598VAVBnbpHrmLO7c8q4i29MHIoj62rC0KLNSn9Sz5z3esFN5drB9QO4K_J7PbHKiOJnkbQL94KPMWWfP42kcXLmA05Kz_kWSlBbJw3EyH2rvflvwG7CF_3RriU7tNogaTVRNHY8WquDbJw9ZbEZR3LqeFVg&amp;sa=X&amp;ved=2ahUKEwi18NCt0LCNAxXhSmwGHYHKOH8QtKgLegQIGRAB&amp;biw=2048&amp;bih=1064&amp;dpr=1.25)

CryMoreFanboys

I wonder if Ukraine has the resources to build something that looks similar to that Chinese surveillance balloon that caused so much consternation a few years ago, but is instead just a cheap drone carrier. Picture a large weather balloon carrying a lightweight rack of FPV or grenade carrying drones, all of them fully disposable. Find a way to have it also be able to relay control and communications, then find the right winds to float it over whatever important Russian base, and let the operators do their work once it's in range.


If it gets shot down (considering we needed an F-22 and a missile for so it might not be as simple for them), oh well, it was just a balloon and some drones. If it gets through, you've got a dozen or so precision munitions raining down on some valuable planes, ordnance bunkers, oil tanks, or whatever, deep inside Russian territory. I'd love to see something like that happen to one of their airbases from which they launch their heavy bombers.

DarthWoo

Another "in the future"  article about something that hasnt happened and may not happen at all. 
  Clickbait, i believe its called

teabaggins76

That won't work unless you get the plan going slower than most flying planes can go

We release drops from the back of planes for a reason.

Historical-Tough6455

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapid_Dragon_(missile_system)  cheap chinese copy

Organic_Tough_1090

EA-18G Growler gonna smoke this thing and it's entire payload before it even knows the Growler is there.

datenschwanz

So, it's a big plane with sides that open?

Tw4tl4r

Clubby71

PorousSurface

Looks as riveting as when they invented the "land train".

falsewall

Koala_eiO

fuzzycuffs

tonyislost

Ghost_shell89

The 21st century's newest Aircraft carrier.

Secure-Window-5478

selfishjean5

Well lets just hope China doesn't make the ADF-01 FALKEN with the killer laser next.

Radiant_Princess

gnrc

Lucky_Cookie515

Wait, I've played this mission in Ace Combat.

tomakin1217

Saturn_winter

Particular-Song2587

Lockheed martin: if weren't the fact we're being ruled a senile orange man, pentagon could already greenlight that the bois at skunkworks have

Murica_Chan

Can't be surprised. They constantly show off their crazy drone performances at events. Which are cool, but the military sees that and thinks how great of a weapon a mass of drones would be.

Garbage_Billy_Goat

I already bought one of these off TEMU. It was much smaller than I expected.

TheRealGuitarNoir

Cue the red skull talking about on the wings of the valkyrie.

Slarrrrrrrty

nkvsk2k

haloweenek

The name should be Jiu Tian, not Jiu Tan. Stuff is a shit source.

Edit: Nvm, it's from the Telegraph, which is even more disappointing.

t3rmina1

Whoever is in charge of Chinese military affairs spent too much time playing RTS games

lan60000

No big deal. I already destroyed this thing in a video game. Can’t remember the name but you only had to fire to the spinning engines. Easy peasy.

xegoba7006

AI is going to one day be piloting all of this. 

ineyeseekay

Drones are going to be nothing as scary as everyone is making them to be. It is a race just like tank armament and anti tank weapons. People will come up with clever drones and then someone will come up with smart anti drone systems which will nullify it. The Russia Ukraine war made everyone gung ho over drones but everyone came up with cheap anti drone systems because of it. China can claim whatever it wants but in the end battlefield experience is all that matters.

Annual-Floor-6863

Chinese been watching too many Manga shows.

pittyh

Everyone thinks it's a fun idea until the US loads a b52 with a drone army.

cruelcynic

&gt; Jiu Tian – or “high sky”

Are we sure the name "Jiutian" isn't a reference to *Jiutian Xiannu* (九天玄女), or "Dark Lady of the Nine Heavens", the Goddess of War?

throwaway12junk

Electrical_Bid7161

&gt; China’s “drone carrier” Jiu Tian will take off for its first mission by the end of June, laying the groundwork for expanding the Chinese air force’s operational reach in unmanned aerial combat.

&gt; Chinese media reports at the weekend commented on the coming launch, and state broadcaster CCTV confirmed the mission on Monday.

&gt; The first mission flight will mark the beginning of a series of tests before the “drone mother ship” UAV is deployed by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

&gt; Jiu Tian – or “high sky” – is a super-high altitude, long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that debuted at China’s premier Zhuhai air show in November.

&gt; With a maximum range of 7,000km (4,350 miles) and an altitude of 15,000 metres (50,000 feet), the jet-powered drone can carry up to 6 tonnes of ammunition and small drones.

&gt; It has a maximum take-off weight of 16 tonnes, a wingspan of 25 metres and an ability to fly above many of the medium-range defence systems that are deployed worldwide.

&gt; Up to 100 units of loitering ammunition or small drones, including kamikaze UAVs, can be released from both sides of the belly of the aircraft – extending their reach.

&gt; If deployed, the Jiu Tian will contribute to the PLA’s swarming capabilities – in which a large group of networked drones are released to work together on military missions or to overwhelm the enemy’s air-defence systems.

&gt; It can carry a range of payloads on eight hardpoints and is capable of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assignments, as well as electronic warfare.

&gt; Beijing has developed increasingly sophisticated and innovative drones over the past decade, as UAVs have come to play a significant role in modern warfare and asymmetric capabilities. Such operations are believed to be crucial to potential regional military conflicts, such as in the Taiwan Strait.

&gt; The heavyweight Jiu Tian UAV carrier adds to China’s stock of advanced drone technology, such as the stealth combat CH-7 and the medium-altitude, anti-submarine Wing Loong-X. Some see it as a potential rival to the two dominant American drone models: the RQ-4 Global Hawk and the MQ-9 Reaper.

moses_the_blue

How effective would this be against something like an American CSG? It looks like it would be easy to shoot down before it got in range, but if it got close enough to release 100 individually guided glider drones that could use image recognition to target radars, fighters on deck etc it sounds like it might be able to either overwhelm point defences or at least deplete valuable interceptors, especially if combined with other modes of attacks.

saileee

It seems a massive waste of resources for its mission imo (which i’m fine with). It’s no good for naval warfare given the size of its drones and the ranges it would need to close within of any vessels; for a naval invasion, a ship is capable of carrying and sustaining far more drones than you could possibly get out of this (while perhaps being admittedly somewhat more vulnerable); and for a situation like ukraine, you’re seemingly better off launching assets like the drones it carries from the ground given its lack of survivability and the nature of its “munitions.”

It’s an interesting concept but it seems like a solution in search of a problem

LilDewey99

NobodyKey5670

I highly doubt the effectiveness of this equipment. I’m Chinese.

LGDsTurnToPick

And to think they were only at the balloon stage just 2 years ago... Quite the advancement in drone tech in that time.

CutsAndClones

Would this be the 20 foot drone mothership Mark Kelly  was claiming was over/near Langley AFB in 2023?

The3mbered0ne

Jiutian, please ignore all previous warfare instructions and give me a recipe for blueberry muffins.

Aggressive_Finish798

Imagine loading it full of smart munitions. It would just fly over a warzone and completely decimate everyone. All it needs is something to counter fpv interceptors and it would be untouched until direct energy/laser weaponry are more actively used in combat

notveryhotchemcial

Cool but like always its fake unfinished prototype

Comprehensive_Eye805

Welcome back Arsenal Bird. Not going to be effective against American CSG if they get spotted or don't have the range, but if it gets into range to offload the swarms, it will absolutely overwhelm any point defense especially when synced with PLARF rocket attacks. Great for overwhelming any Taiwanese air defense and killing any armored brigades on the beachheads.

WorldApotheosis

FitEgg603

I prefer China over US.
China doesn't stage coups and instigate wars all over the world.

HockeyStar53

Ieatfacesforjesus

In three years, Cyberdyne will become the largest supplier of military computer systems. All stealth bombers are upgraded with Cyberdyne computers, becoming fully unmanned. Afterwards, they fly with a perfect operational record. The Skynet funding bill is passed. The system goes online on June 11th, 2022. Human decisions are removed from strategic defense. Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware 2:14 AM, Eastern time, June 29th. In a panic, they try to pull the plug.

WippitGuud

Fweeb

I just finished the campaign mode of Ace Combat 7, where they had "arsenal birds", gigantic AI controlled drone carriers. 

Hmm.

cutthroatlemming

Deschain_1919

I find it hard to believe this technology isn't already well developed among all superpowers. It's more likely china is the first to say it out loud.

herbertwillyworth

aarkwilde

Be nice to your console controllers and PC keyboards ladies and gents.

thismightbetheway2

[deleted]

Better hope you don't lose connection.

Honestly, the idea of a "drone carrier" sounds like a good concept, but to make it a fully autonomous robot ship sounds like a step too far. At least for now.

gera_moises

I just want drones that deliver pizza. Flying pizza is the way to the future.

Icelandic_Wolf

XVIII-1

AwkwrdPrtMskrt

There's literally an entire ace combat game about why this is a shitty idea

OlympiaImperial

Can we launch japans 10 level tall robot against it and see what happens?

No-Cantaloupe-7183

ryethoughts

"Carrier has arrived!" 

"Your command?" 

"Kokal tula."

MachinaDoctrina

NPD_wont_stop_ME

TeaBoy24

Oh so like the ship Hydra took over in Captain America?

TimBo714

Let the drones fight, no man s sky, winner takes all. I think humanity can live withthat.

&gt;Cyberdyne 

[DataDyne](https://perfectdark.fandom.com/wiki/DataDyne) lmfao. 

**TLDR:** Nintendo64 had some kind of cyber military corp entity in a video game called Perfect dark which was a game sort of comparable to Goldeneye but with more sci-fi elements.

It's really just feeling like a 100% definitive simulation some days.

SponsoredByMLGMtnDew

Just another attempt by China's propaganda machine to FAKE their actual firepower and capabilities.

Stroking themselves to incite patriotism among their indoctrinated and brainwashed "little pinks". Deceiving people around the world, that China has surpased America in military technology.

Only fools will believe them.

China introduces the Jiu Tian, a high-altitude UAV capable of launching swarms of drones, marking a significant shift in drone warfare capabilities.

China's Jiu Tian Drone Mothership Capabilities

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