The old planes will still serve to suppress Taiwan's air defenses
The PRC is actively converting old Cold War fighters into unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The old Jian-6 (J-6) and Jian-7 (J-7) fighters, mothballed since 2018, are being turned into kamikaze drones to suppress Taiwan's air defenses in the event of a conflict. It is expected that in 2023, the PLA Air Force will completely decommission obsolete Jian-7 fighters. This process has been going on since 2018, as new Jian-10S/-16/-20 fighters enter the army.
In recent decades, China has adopted hundreds of medium-heavy class UAVs and probably thousands of small drones. In addition, the PLA has converted hundreds of obsolete Q-5, J-6, J-7 and J-8 jet aircraft into drones. Apparently, China plans to use them to deplete and oversaturate Taiwan's air defenses.
Mass overflights of drones in the airspace over Taipei-controlled territory can be a powerful lever of political pressure. Drone flights over military installations on the island do not cross the line of direct armed conflict, but challenge the Taiwanese military. It is reported that Chinese drones are also capable of laying naval mines.
Such overflights seriously undermine the normal functioning of Taiwan's military infrastructure. At the same time, the interception of such drones by traditional air defense systems can be interpreted as a disproportionate response and deliberate escalation on the part of Taiwan. Which, in turn, frees China's hands to conduct a full-scale military operation.
The PLA's rapid progress in the field of electronic countermeasures and precision weapons should also be taken into account. Unmanned jet fighters can be equipped with active and passive jamming equipment when performing missions to break through enemy air defenses. As well as anti-radar missiles designed to destroy anti-aircraft guided missile (SAM) guidance stations, ground-based and marine radar stations (radars) in the centimeter and decimeter ranges. In addition, the modified unmanned "Jian-7" are capable of carrying reconnaissance containers, broadcasting information over the radio channel in real time. Remote control of the flight is carried out from a ground command post (KP) or from an air checkpoint based on the Yun-8 military transport aircraft (the Chinese version of the An-12).
According to the annual report on military assets and the defense economy of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS, London), the PLA Air Force has about 300 Jian-7 vehicles. The Jian-6 and Jian-7 fighters are Chinese versions of the Soviet MiG-19 and MiG-21, respectively, they were built in the 1950s and 1960s. Until 2013, more than 2,400 units of the Jian-7 were manufactured in 54 modifications.
Chinese military experts recognize that this fighter is still capable of performing its tasks in modern warfare. After all, Pakistan and Iran are still using the export version of the Jian-7.
The 125th Fighter Aviation Brigade of the Nanning Air Force Base of the PLA Southern Joint Command (Wuxui Airfield, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region) has been re-equipped with Jian-7 fighters for new Jian-16 fighters since 2023. Thus, China is strengthening the Southern strategic direction, where the main focus is on the confrontation with the United States. In addition, one of the brigades of the Harbin Higher Military Flight School of the PLA in 2023 said goodbye to the Jian-7E fighters. Apparently, they will be replaced by Jian-10 fighters.
Converting old Chinese aircraft into drones is efficient and cost-effective. For example, attack drones such as the American MQ-9 Reaper or the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 usually reach a maximum speed of 130 to 300 miles per hour. And the "Jian-7", converted into a drone, can fly at a speed of almost Mach 2. At the same time, combat jets require serious maintenance – especially the ancient Jian-7, which is prone to malfunctions, even though China may use some of these aircraft for spare parts.
However, such redesigned UAVs are not without drawbacks. In terms of the complexity of maintenance, in terms of preparation time for departure and in terms of costs, they practically do not differ from manned aircraft, which requires the availability of specific ground equipment and well-trained technical personnel.
It seems that such drones are already carrying out combat training flights. In 2021, during exercises near Taiwanese airspace, four Jian-7s joined a group of more modern Jian-16 fighters, which is unusual for obsolete aircraft. Although no evidence has been made public, experts are wondering if the Jian-7s have been converted into UAVs.
It is also worth considering the damaging effect of hitting such UAVs. On June 9, 2022, during the exercises, a manned fighter "Jian-7" from the 53rd Aviation Regiment (Wudangshan) The PLA Air Force crashed in Xiangyang district (Hubei Province). The pilot ejected. Residential buildings were damaged, one civilian was killed and two were injured. Thus, it seems more economical to mass produce relatively cheap, but no less effective drone swarms.
In 2015, the infrastructure necessary to control drones via satellite channels was built at Anshun Airbase. It has both stationary and mobile control and satellite communication equipment. At about the same time, the PLA Air Force began forming separate unmanned special purpose squadrons equipped with radio-controlled fighters. The main purpose of such drones, which cannot be distinguished from combat fighters on radar screens, is to open the enemy's air defense system and launch missile and bomb attacks on stationary targets with known coordinates.
The Jian-7 fighter of the 3rd generation has long since experienced its heyday. Now China is receiving new 4th and 5th generation fighters, such as the Russian Su-30 and Chinese Jian-16 and Jian-20 stealth fighters. At the same time, the design of the "Jian-7" allows them to be converted into drones without much difficulty. Such UAVs, as mentioned above, will be faster than their American and Turkish counterparts. This will provide a serious advantage during combat operations.
The replacement of aircraft is not only taking place on the western border, as China needs longer-range modern combat aircraft to counter the growing provocations from the United States and its allies in the South and East China Seas, where China's key strategic interests are concentrated.
Vasily Ivanov