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Small consumer drones being purchased from DJI is very different from the Chinese government developing Shahed attack drones...

by mfkp 2y ago

maxglute 2y ago
It's likely not the Chinese government. It's likely some commercial PRC company that's not likely even part of PLA procurement chain trying to war profiteer / make a buck. IMO "allegation" goal to reporting is to pressure PRC to limit non government/PLA commercial activities that could assist RU. You can go through some of Cobtech (drone maker) catalogue here (https://beijingcbtoptics.en.alibaba.com/ https://beijingcbtoptics.en.alibaba.com/), I've never seen any of their stuff in formal PLA aquisitions (which I follow closely). They look to be some generic imaging/optics company that sold OEM commercial products, for civilian use until they started making bank during UKR war and thought it was profitable idea to expand into cloning shaheds after realizing it would be pretty trivial to put together a shahed tier drone with PRC supply chains (which Shahed already uses). US sanctions said company, now said company is likely going to start selling to RU who just became biggest customer. Western MSM try to spin it as "China" formally assisting RU, but it's just PRC not inhibiting commercial activities even if it fuels RU war machine, because PRC producers aren't going to not profit when everyone else is. Especially if RU was paying comical 200k-300k for for a 10k drone made in Iran that PRC can probably make for 5k. TBH this reads as a company much less sophisticated than DJI getting into the much more technologically accessible ghetto drone powered by moped category. They probably planned to sell a bunch of non-lethal airframes, which RU would then fit with warheads because realistically the only use for a 8ft prop drone with 2000km range is to bomb stuff. Much harder to argue for dual use unlike machine tools or small DJI drones. Along with company selling range of optics, which they can at least dodge by saying it was for sports hunting / recreational / civlian use. But no one hunts deer with a 2000km loitering munition. If PRC/PLA wanted to help RU, they'd just send over formally inducted PLA hardware/suprlus from official MIC manufacturers, which they would probably love to have validated on the battlefield.
- caustic-view 2y ago
  [flagged]
tamimio 2y ago
They don’t use DJI for the attacks, only reconnaissance, the attacks are done by FPV drones, all parts are Chinese.

Small consumer drones being purchased from DJI is very different from the Chinese government developing Shahed attack drones...

by mfkp 2y ago

Small consumer drones being purchased from DJI is very different from the Chinese government developing Shahed attack drones...

maxglute 2y ago

It's likely not the Chinese government. It's likely some commercial PRC company that's not likely even part of PLA procurement chain trying to war profiteer / make a buck. IMO "allegation" goal to reporting is to pressure PRC to limit non government/PLA commercial activities that could assist RU. You can go through some of Cobtech (drone maker) catalogue here (https://beijingcbtoptics.en.alibaba.com/ https://beijingcbtoptics.en.alibaba.com/), I've never seen any of their stuff in formal PLA aquisitions (which I follow closely). They look to be some generic imaging/optics company that sold OEM commercial products, for civilian use until they started making bank during UKR war and thought it was profitable idea to expand into cloning shaheds after realizing it would be pretty trivial to put together a shahed tier drone with PRC supply chains (which Shahed already uses). US sanctions said company, now said company is likely going to start selling to RU who just became biggest customer. Western MSM try to spin it as "China" formally assisting RU, but it's just PRC not inhibiting commercial activities even if it fuels RU war machine, because PRC producers aren't going to not profit when everyone else is. Especially if RU was paying comical 200k-300k for for a 10k drone made in Iran that PRC can probably make for 5k. TBH this reads as a company much less sophisticated than DJI getting into the much more technologically accessible ghetto drone powered by moped category. They probably planned to sell a bunch of non-lethal airframes, which RU would then fit with warheads because realistically the only use for a 8ft prop drone with 2000km range is to bomb stuff. Much harder to argue for dual use unlike machine tools or small DJI drones. Along with company selling range of optics, which they can at least dodge by saying it was for sports hunting / recreational / civlian use. But no one hunts deer with a 2000km loitering munition. If PRC/PLA wanted to help RU, they'd just send over formally inducted PLA hardware/suprlus from official MIC manufacturers, which they would probably love to have validated on the battlefield.

caustic-view 2y ago
[flagged]

tamimio 2y ago

They don’t use DJI for the attacks, only reconnaissance, the attacks are done by FPV drones, all parts are Chinese.