Home-developed ton-class cargo drone completes maiden flight

Tianma-1000, an unmanned ton-class transport aircraft independently developed by China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO), completed its maiden flight in northwest China's Shaanxi Province on Sunday. Developed by NORINCO-affiliated Xi'an Aisheng Technology Group Co., Ltd., the aircraft integrates multiple functions including logistics transport, emergency rescue, and material delivery.

It is China's first medium-altitude, low-cost transport platform capable of adapting to complex plateau terrain, performing ultra-short distance takeoffs and landings, and rapid switching between cargo transport and airdrop modes, filling a critical technological gap in relevant domestic field. "Our team innovatively developed a real-time positioning and fault-tolerant control system, overcoming flight stability challenges in complex air currents on plateau. We broke through integration bottlenecks between optical-guided landing assistance system and short-distance takeoff and landing (STOL) support systems, significantly reducing required takeoff and landing distances. This enables adaptation to extreme terrains like grasslands, effectively enhancing the drone's adaptability in complex environments and multi-task integration capabilities," said Ma Chunhao, chief engineer of the Tianma-1000 project.

The Tianma-1000 has a maximum operating altitude of 8,000 meters, a maximum range of 1,800 kilometers, a minimum takeoff/landing distance of less than 200 meters, and a maximum carrying capacity of one ton.

With a modular cargo bay, it can also be flexibly converted to perform cluster deployment, communication relay and multi-region support.

In special scenarios of natural disasters and emergency rescue operations, the Tianma-1000 can deliver up to one ton of supplies to areas inaccessible by road or rail within half a day without transshipment, significantly enhancing emergency response speed.

In the future, it will be widely deployed in civilian logistics, emergency rescue operations, border defense supply missions, and specialized transport.

"Next, we will leverage the Tianma series of unmanned transport aircraft as a driving force, further transform our technological innovation advantages into industrial strengths and competitive edges, as well as a new engine for local economic growth, so as to contribute to the high-quality development of both the drone industry and the low-altitude sector," said Xue Jianqiang, chairman of the Xi'an Aisheng Technology Group Co., Ltd.

Home-developed ton-class cargo drone completes maiden flight

A new robotic traffic officer began its duty on the streets of Wuhu City in east China's Anhui Province on Saturday.

This domestically developed robot is now undergoing on-the-job training, participating in front-line traffic management and order maintenance.

At the intersection of Chizhushan Road and Huizhou Road in Wuhu, the robotic officer, wearing a white police cap and a traffic vest, was seen directing traffic with standard hand gestures.

It reminded passing vehicles of traffic rules and coordinated with on-site human officers to promote civilized road behavior.

"It looks just like a real person at first sight, while radiating a strong sense of technological sophistication. It serves as a deterrent to both drivers and helmet-less riders alike," said Zhang Xiaoping, a local resident.

The robotic traffic officer is equipped with six cameras and one light detection and ranging system, enabling it to perceive road conditions, avoid obstacles autonomously while moving, and transmit collected data to a backend system.

Currently, the robot is primarily undergoing training for application scenarios such as disseminating traffic regulations, assisting with intersection command and control, and intelligently identifying and advising against uncivilized behavior.

Robotic traffic officer on duty in east China's Anhui