An aircraft that could be China’s new stealth drone, unofficially dubbed the “GJ-X,” has been spotted flying for the first time.
Images and video of the aircraft began circulating on social media site X over the weekend. The accounts that shared the images and video identified it as the GJ-X, though this is difficult to verify as the Chinese government does not acknowledge its existence. The GJ-X name was coined by Western aviation reporters and enthusiasts, not the Chinese military.
It was not immediately clear where the aircraft was observed flying.
Defense website The War Zone reported Sunday that the drone could be the GJ-X or one with a similar platform. China is known to be developing a number of crewed and uncrewed military aircraft but generally does not release information about them to domestic or international news sources.
The GJ-X’s flying wing design is somewhat similar to the X-47B, an unmanned fighter drone built by Northrop Grumman for demonstration purposes in the early 2010s.
Western China-watchers have not established the aircraft’s intended role. Some contend it is an uncrewed combat vehicle, while others argue it is an uncrewed stealth bomber.
The War Zone first reported the GJ-X’s existence in September, when the aircraft was spotted on the ground at Malan Air Base in China’s western Xinjiang region.
