To address the logistical challenges of power grid construction in mountainous areas while protecting the ecological environment, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality has completed its first aerial transportation of transmission tower components using heavy-lift drones.
The operation concluded on Saturday as part of a renovation project on the 35-kilovolt Xitu Line, which involves 15 towers.
In Zhongliang Township of Wuxi County, northeast Chongqing, a heavy-lift drone carrying 289 kilograms of steel tower materials ascended along its planned route and flew straight toward Tower No. 17 of the Xitu Line.
After approximately 20 minutes, the drone hovered above the tower foundation and lowered the payload precisely onto the designated area. With drone assistance, all materials for the entire tower, which stands over 40 meters tall, were completed in just over two hours.
In the project, a total of 125.44 tons of tower materials for the 15 towers located on steep terrain were delivered exclusively by drones.
"The use of heavy-lift drones to transport transmission tower materials has demonstrated multiple significant advantages. Capable of flying directly over mountains, villages and other obstacles, the drones are well suited to complex terrain and eliminate the need to build winding mountain access roads. Compared with traditional mule-and-horse transport, overall costs are greatly reduced. Materials that originally required three days to deliver for a single tower now only take half a day," said Chen Tao, a staff member of the Construction Department, State Grid Chongqing Wuxi Power Supply Company.
Using drone to transport materials minimized the need for temporary road construction and eliminated tree felling, effectively protecting natural forests and preventing damage to mountain vegetation.
By reducing carbon emissions and ecological disturbance, drone transportation has achieved both environmental protection and economic efficiency.
Heavy-lift drone debuts in China's Chongqing to transport transmission tower materials
The Navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said that the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked since Saturday evening and will not reopen until the United States lifts its naval blockade on the waterway.
In a statement carried by its official news outlet Sepah News, the IGRC said that the move came after the United States violated its commitments under the two-week ceasefire, which took effect on April 8, and failed to end its naval blockade against Iranian vessels and ports.
The IRGC Navy called on all vessels and their owners to follow official updates via its channel and VHF Channel 16, the international maritime distress, safety, and calling frequency. The statements by U.S. President Donald Trump hold no credibility in the strait and the Gulf, it added.
The IRGC warned that no vessel should move from its anchorage in the Gulf or the Gulf of Oman, and any approach to the strait would be deemed "cooperation with the enemy" and targeted accordingly.
Tehran's political leadership echoed the IRGC's firm position. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf asserted that the Strait of Hormuz is under Iran's control, revealing that during previous negotiations, Iran had firmly countered U.S. attempts to carry out minesweeping operations, which Tehran viewed as a ceasefire violation.
He said the situation had come close to conflict, but the U.S. had eventually backed off.
Calling the U.S. maritime blockade "reckless and ignorant," Ghalibaf warned that passage through the strait would certainly be restricted if Washington does not lift the blockade.
Underpinning these public announcements, Iran's Supreme National Security Council on Saturday affirmed the country's resolve to exercise control and supervision over traffic through the Strait of Hormuz until the war is definitively ended and lasting peace is achieved in the region.
For its part, the United States pressed ahead with its own military measures.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement on Saturday that the U.S. military is imposing a maritime blockade on ships entering and exiting Iranian ports and nearby coastal areas. Since the blockade began on April 13, 23 ships have complied with U.S. directions to turn around.
Meanwhile, the U.S. military is preparing in the coming days to board Iran-linked oil tankers and seize commercial ships in international waters, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing U.S. officials.
The move will enable the U.S. to take control of Iran-linked vessels around the world, including ships carrying Iranian oil that are already sailing outside the Persian Gulf and those carrying arms that could support Tehran, the report said.
Iran's IRGC says Strait of Hormuz blocked, demands end to US naval blockade
