A Chinese stealth drone has been catapulted off a warship and caught by its arresting wires on the way back, Beijing says. The navy’s evidence, so far, is one unnamed navy source and no photos of the flight.
The GJ-21, which Xinhua bills as China’s first shipborne stealth reconnaissance-strike drone, “recently” completed its first takeoff and landing aboard the amphibious assault ship Sichuan, the state news agency reported on Oct. 30.
No date. No sea area. No flight count. No video either, Baird Maritime noted.
Catapult and hook
The launch used Sichuan’s electromagnetic catapult, Baird reported. The navy source told Xinhua the flights mean the navy can now operate fixed-wing stealth drones from large maritime combat platforms, and called it another breakthrough for China’s assault ship programme.
The GJ-21 is a naval version of the GJ-11: a tailless flying wing with a single turbofan, weapons tucked in internal bays and a hook underneath, according to Baird. How far it flies and what it carries, Beijing isn’t saying, Army Recognition reported.
Meet Sichuan
The Sichuan is not a typical landing ship. It displaces more than 40,000 tonnes fully loaded and carries a full-length flight deck, twin islands, an electromagnetic catapult, arrestor gear and automated landing guidance, Xinhua said. It was launched on Dec. 27, 2024, and went to sea for trials in November 2025. Since then, the navy source said, it has finished equipment debugging and operational stability testing.
The ship itself isn’t commissioned yet. That is tentatively set for 2027.
Satellite watchers did catch it moving. The War Zone spotted Sichuan at its berth on Oct. 10 and 13, gone four days later and back around Oct. 26. Whether the drone flew in that window, the navy hasn’t said.
The drone-carrier play
Chinese commentators are already looking past the assault ship. Military commentator Song Zhongping told Global Times the Type 076 could work as a drone carrier and build the know-how for China’s third aircraft carrier to fly crewed and uncrewed aircraft together, Baird reported. Analyst Zhang Xuefeng told Reuters the GJ-21 “low cost and reusable,” with a substantial combat radius.
China isn’t first. A U.S. X-47B made an autonomous arrested landing on USS George H.W. Bush in 2013. But that was a one-off demonstrator on a full-size carrier. Beijing is claiming stealth drone operations from an amphibious ship it says is built to carry them.
The claim is on the record. The footage isn’t.
