Industry Insight | Maritime Debut, Heavy-Lift Showcase, Tilt-Rotor Maiden Flight — Multi-Line Breakthroughs in Low-Altitude Equipment, In-Depth Expansion of Military-Civilian Dual Use

A heavy-lift unmanned helicopter was showcased during the Premier’s inspection visit to Tangshan. Wanfeng’s eVTOL completed a public maritime flight in South Korea and secured university-enterprise cooperation. Qingdao’s first Beijing low-altitude industry spillover project was successfully launched. NUAA’s 1.5-ton "Qizhi-5" tilt-rotor UAV completed its maiden flight. The systematic application of three types of military UAVs was publicly revealed for the first time. Low-altitude equipment is expanding in depth across military and civilian applications, transitioning from commercial verification to systematic deployment.

1. Heavy-Lift Unmanned Helicopter Showcased During Premier’s Tangshan Inspection Visit

On July 28, Li Qiang, Premier of the State Council, visited Tangshan, Hebei Province for inspection and condolences. According to CCTV’s News Broadcast, the FWH-1500 heavy-lift unmanned helicopter independently developed by Flightwin Innovation was exhibited on site as core emergency rescue equipment, receiving inspection and observation, fully demonstrating the practical value of low-altitude unmanned equipment in disaster prevention, mitigation and rescue operations.

The FWH-1500 heavy-lift unmanned helicopter requires no fixed runway and can perform vertical takeoff and landing in confined spaces. Its modular payload system includes electro-optical reconnaissance pods, public network/satellite communications, broadband ad-hoc networking, fire suppression and material delivery, enabling one-stop completion of core tasks such as disaster inspection, airborne communication relay, emergency material delivery and forest fire response, effectively establishing a "low-altitude lifeline" for disaster rescue.

The appearance of the heavy-lift unmanned helicopter at the Premier’s inspection site marks the entry of low-altitude emergency rescue equipment into the national disaster prevention, mitigation and relief system, becoming core technical equipment recognized at the national level.

2. Wanfeng eVTOL Completes Public Maritime Flight in Jeju Island, South Korea

On July 29, Volocopter, a subsidiary of Wanfeng Group, together with South Korea’s Chodang University, successfully held a public flight event for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft in Jeju Island, South Korea. This flight specifically included a maritime flight demonstration segment, showcasing the aircraft’s excellent flight performance and safety stability in complex island airspace environments. This marks the first international public flight demonstration by Wanfeng since its restructuring of Volocopter in March 2025.

During the event, Wanfeng Volocopter reached strategic cooperation with Chodang University. Both parties will jointly promote industrial implementation and talent cultivation, building a professional curriculum system and systematic training program for UAM/eVTOL pilots to address South Korea’s shortage of low-altitude aviation professionals. Under the cooperation plan, Chodang University will be equipped with multiple VoloXpro training aircraft and professional flight simulators, establishing a "theory + hands-on practice" teaching system.

This public maritime flight represents an important milestone in the global deployment of Wanfeng’s eVTOL aircraft — going beyond simply exporting aircraft products to delivering a comprehensive output of operational systems, airworthiness compliance capabilities and talent cultivation frameworks.

3. Qingdao’s First Beijing Low-Altitude Industry Spillover Project Successfully Launched

On July 31, the head of Qingdao’s Low-Altitude Economy Industry Task Force led a delegation to Beijing, holding in-depth negotiations with enterprises including Beijing Hua’an Tiancheng on core matters such as airspace resources, application scenarios, support policies and state-owned asset supporting arrangements. Representing the municipal low-altitude economy task force, the Qingdao Development and Reform Commission signed a landing framework agreement with Beijing Hua’an Tiancheng Technology Co., Ltd.

Under the agreement, relevant enterprises will invest in establishing an independent legal entity in Qingdao in partnership with local Qingdao platforms through technology and equity investment, deeply participating in the construction of key low-altitude projects, infrastructure layout and featured scenario operations in Qingdao, and conducting full-chain business including airspace resource operation and industrial consulting services.

This is the first project to land since Qingdao began its efforts to 承接 Beijing’s low-altitude economy resource spillover, carrying significant importance for improving the local low-altitude industrial ecosystem. Qingdao’s Low-Altitude Economy Industry Task Force will use this project as a benchmark and catalyst to continuously deepen Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei regional cooperation and promote the aggregation of upstream and downstream enterprises along the industrial chain.

4. NUAA’s "Qizhi-5" Tilt-Rotor UAV Successfully Completes Maiden Flight

On August 1, the 1.5-ton "Qizhi-5" tilt-rotor UAV developed by Nanjing Qizhi Aviation Technology Co., Ltd. successfully completed its first public flight at the Chuzhou flight test base. Qizhi Aviation is a technology commercialization enterprise of Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (NUAA), led by the team of Professor Zhao Qijun, Dean of the NUAA Helicopter Research Institute.

The "Qizhi-5" boasts a maximum flight speed of 450 km/h, a payload capacity of 300 kg and a range of 1,900 km, with three core advantages: vertical takeoff and landing, all-domain adaptability, and high-speed cruise. Centered on its independently controllable tilt-rotor technology, Qizhi Aviation has fully mastered six core technologies — overall design, transmission system, rotor system, flight control, structural design, and aerodynamic noise — building an independently controllable technology system covering the entire forward-design process of complete aircraft.

During the maiden flight, the "Qizhi-5" sequentially completed takeoff, hovering, maneuvering flight and landing, with the entire process autonomously controlled by the flight control system. The aircraft maintained stable flight status with all parameters meeting standards, fully verifying the reliability and advancement of the overall aerodynamic layout, power system and flight control system.

Jiang Bin, President of NUAA, stated that the successful maiden flight of "Qizhi-5" is another fruitful achievement of the university’s deep integration of industry, academia and research. The successful maiden flight marks a critical step toward industrialization for the Qizhi series of tilt-rotor UAVs.

5. Systematic Application of Three Types of Military UAVs Publicly Revealed for the First Time

On August 4, according to authoritative media reports including CCTV News, footage of the systematic application of three types of Chinese military UAVs was publicly revealed for the first time. The report noted that UAVs are gradually moving to the forefront of combat systems, becoming a key variable in defeating powerful adversaries.

In the publicly released footage, Li Zhengwei, an officer from a unit of the Southern Theater Command Air Force, brought joint operations command experience to the development of UAV forces, driving the transformation of UAV capabilities from single-mission roles to systematic support. Massive intelligence data is deeply integrated with the operational requirements of the Rocket Force, Navy and Army. Unmanned combat is profoundly changing the face of warfare — from situational awareness to precision strikes, from single reconnaissance to multi-service support.

Shifting from territorial air defense to balanced offense and defense, from passive defense to active sensing, UAVs are profoundly transforming traditional combat models and becoming a new capability increment for joint operations.

Observation & Outlook

The five updates covered in this issue of Industry Insight precisely outline the complete spectrum of low-altitude equipment, from commercial verification to national defense applications:

The heavy-lift unmanned helicopter’s appearance at the Premier’s inspection signifies national-level recognition of low-altitude emergency rescue equipment and its integration into the national disaster prevention, mitigation and relief system. Wanfeng eVTOL’s maritime debut in South Korea completes the commercial verification of domestically produced eVTOL in complex overseas environments, while the university-enterprise cooperation model provides a new paradigm for low-altitude talent cultivation. Qingdao’s first Beijing low-altitude spillover project opens up a practical pathway for Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei low-altitude industrial coordination, providing a model for regional industrial 承接. The successful maiden flight of NUAA’s "Qizhi-5" demonstrates the capacity for university technology commercialization — with a 1.5-ton class, 450 km/h speed and 1,900 km range, the boundaries of independently controllable tilt-rotor technology are continuously expanding. The first public revelation of the systematic application of three types of military UAVs reveals the highest-order application scenario for low-altitude equipment — UAVs are evolving from auxiliary tools to the core forefront of joint operations systems.

From commercial flights to emergency rescue, from industrial coordination to national defense applications, low-altitude equipment is advancing from "point breakthroughs" toward "systematic development".

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