PLA Chinese Air Force old J-6 and J-7 jets being converted into kamikaze drones.

China is believed to convert some of its old fighter jets dating back to the Cold War into drones, Christopher McFadden reports in Interesting Engineering. Old fighters like the J-6 and J-7, which have been progressively mothballed since around 2018, are the prime ‘’guinea pigs’’. These drones could, according to some experts, be used as suicide drones to, for example, overwhelm Taiwan's air defenses as a prelude to a Chinese attack.

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Shenyang J-6 (F-6) fighter at Zhuhai Airshow 2010 (Picture source: Wikipedia)

The J-6 and J-7 were China's versions of the Soviet MiG-19 and MiG-21, respectively, built between the 1950s and 1960s. Equivalent to the MiG-21, more than 2,400 J-7s were manufactured in 54 variants up until 2013. Pakistan and Iran still fly the F-7 export version, Christopher McFadden writes. According to an annual military assets and defense economics report from the International Institute of Strategic Studies, the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) has nearly 300 J-7s. However, the third-generation J-7 is well past its prime, given that China is now getting new 4th- and 5th-generation fighters like the Russian-designed Su-30, and the Chinese J-16 and J-20 stealth fighters.

The J-7 could readily be transformed into an uncrewed combat air vehicle (UCAV) for that new role. Hence, some experts speculate that this conversion of J6s may already be well underway, Christopher McFadden writes. Observers pointed out that in 2021, during drills close to Taiwanese airspace, four J-7s joined a group of more modern J-16 fighters, which was unusual for an aging aircraft that even the Taiwanese dismissed as a "grandpa jet." Even though no proof has been made public, some people have questioned whether these J-7s have been modified to become drones.

Converting old jets into drones is pretty cost-effective. Furthermore, combat drones with a specific purpose, such as the American MQ-9 Reaper or the Turkish TB2 Bayraktar, typically travel at a maximum speed of 130 to 300 mph. Manned fighters, even ancient ones, are built for quick, high-speed maneuvers, and a J-7 converted to a drone could travel at almost Mach 2, where supersonic drones, in particular supersonic UCAVs, are still in their infancy. On the other hand, combat jets require a lot of maintenance, particularly a trouble-prone design like the J-7, even though China may obtain plenty of spare parts by cannibalizing some of these jets. So, for the time being, it is likely more economical to mass produce cheaper but less capable drone swarms, Christopher McFadden concludes.

Shenyang J-7 (F-7) (Picture source: PLA Air Force)