China is increasingly openly showing its ambitions in the domain of space and air dominance through the “Nantianmen” (Heaven’s Gate) project, which is described in Chinese military circles as a kind of “Chinese Star Wars”. As reported by Lijian, the weekly of the military channel of state television CCTV, this plan, which was proposed by the AVIC Corporation back in 2017, is entering a more concrete phase of development.
At the center of the project is the “Luaniao”, a huge flying aircraft carrier, named after a bird from Chinese mythology. According to available data, Luaniao should be 242 meters long, 684 meters wide, with a maximum take-off weight of 120,000 tons. Its concept resembles the flying aircraft carrier from the Hollywood movie Avengers, but it is designed as a realistic military platform.
Unmanned fighters and drone combat outside the atmosphere
Luaniao is planned to carry up to 88 Xuan Nü-class unmanned space fighters, named after the goddess of war. According to reports, these aircraft would have high maneuverability, carry hypersonic missiles and be capable of operations even outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
China has displayed aircraft models related to the Nantianmen project at several military fairs in recent years. Models of the Baidi unmanned stealth aircraft, as well as the Zihuo vertical fighter with artificial intelligence, intended for both combat and rescue missions, were seen at the Zhuhai Air Show and other events. The appearance of these models is interpreted as a signal that the project is no longer just theoretical.
Chinese military analysts point out that Nantianmen combines a number of advanced technologies into a single system and that the question is no longer whether something will be realized, but which segments will become operational first, reports MSN.