The close association and long-standing military cooperation between China and Pakistan have been often reinforced by joint military maneuvers, as by the magnitude of defense trade between them. The two nations often extend and express their support for one another’s stance areas of disputed/occupied territories.

Such enduring partnership is bolstered by entering key Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) between the countries for cooperation in defense. In the most recent instance wherein such a display of cooperation is witnessed, three armed drones, designed by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group of China and sold by China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC), were inducted into the Pakistan Air force (PAF) in January 2021. These aerial combat drones are part of a larger deal between Pakistan and China to co-produce 50 of them in Pakistan.

Both Pakistani and Chinese military officials hailed these armed drones for their capability to fire laser-guided bombs and missiles to attack and destroy air or ground-based targets. True Ceylon’s article titled ‘PAF’s Chinese Drone Nightmare’, stated even that they were touted to pose a threat to Indian ground formations at high altitudes, allegedly giving India ‘nightmares’.

Notwithstanding the lofty assertions, an impending crisis looms over the Pakistani establishment and its military. The purchase of unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) and its addition to Pakistan’s growing range of military equipment has entered a deadlock. The Chinese-made Wing Loong II Unmanned Aerial Systems (UCAVs) have been grounded due to crippling defects within days of induction.

AmaderShomoy, in its report ‘Pakistan Air Force has nightmares about Chinese drones’, relates that what has added to the Pak Air Forces’ misery is the dismal service and maintenance provided by the Chinese firm. CATIC has so far been indifferent to desperate calls for repair and maintenance of the grounded drones. The spares supplied by the firm were substandard and mostly unfit for use. The engineers dispatched to Pakistan to make the grounded aerial vehicles operational at the earliest proved to be incompetent. Pakistani officials have now asked the Chinese firm to send a better-trained group of professionals to tide over the serious crisis.

One of the critical failures has been that of GPS, a key component of an armed drone. Two of the three drones experienced repeated GPS failures during test flights and had to be grounded. A failed GPS in a drone is like a heart failure, Pakistani officials wanted to know if the GPS was failing because of local interference and if so, the drone’s anti-jamming capability would be compromised, making it an easy target during operations.

Equally, the most serious problem was the leakage of nitrogen from Electro-Optical / Infra-Red 

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(EO/IR) cameras mounted on the UAVs, which rendered EO/IR systems useless. These imaging systems provide total situational awareness, both day and night, and in low light conditions. Given its importance, Pakistan Air Force officials wanted an immediate replacement of the EO/IR pods. The Chinese firm was yet to respond to the urgent plea.

The UAV’s rear fuel pump also failed. Interestingly, the spares supplied by the Chinese firm with the drone were a mismatch. Similarly, the defueling equipment supplied with the drones was found to be unserviceable due to contamination. Its replacement is still awaited by PAF.

Another critical failure has been that of SATCOM in some of these drones during the launch and take-off stages. On the ground, the SATCOM antenna failed during the Site Acceptance Test (SAT).

Serious faults were also detected in High-Performance Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) within hours of putting the drones into operation. These radars provide advanced geospatial intelligence capabilities in all weather conditions besides complimenting the Electronic Warfare payload of the drone. Faulty SARs leave the unmanned aerial vehicles blinded, unfit for operation.

An excerpt from the BD Pratidin’s story called ‘Pakistan Air Force is in trouble for buying faulty Chinese drones’ reads that this is not the first time that Pakistani military brass is realizing the unreliability of Chinese military hardware and poor, substandard servicing and maintenance. Pakistan Air force has been coping with a series of inferior military hardware imported from China, including combat aircraft and armed drones, two critical operational components.

China and Pakistan share close military relations, with China supplying a range of modern armaments to the Pakistani defense forces.