Indian and Chinese troops are reported to be maintaining their positions in the disputed areas of Pangong Tso and Galwan Valley along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.
The standoff has been brewing for weeks as China deployed up to 5,000 troops to the Galwan Valley, who erected tents and brought in heavy equipment for constructing bunkers. On Monday, ANI reported that the Indian Army was boosting its force strength in Ladakh and adjoining areas in response to the Chinese build-up.
As the standoff in Ladakh continues, China's state-run media on Sunday reported that the country's "first domestically developed unmanned helicopter focused on plateau operations" had made its maiden flight last week.
The AR500C unmanned helicopter was developed by Aviation Industry Corporation of China, a major Chinese aerospace company. China's Global Times reported the AR500C made its first flight on May 20 "at an AVIC base in Poyang, East China's Jiangxi Province, in which it conducted several maneuvers including hovering, horizontal and vertical moves".
Global Times reported that the main missions of the AR500C include "reconnaissance and communication relay, but when equipped with additional devices, it can also run electronic disruption, target indication, fire strike, cargo delivery and nuclear radiation and chemical contamination reconnaissance". The terms 'fire strike' and 'electronic disruption' appear to denote the capability to carry out precision ground attack and electronic warfare missions, respectively.
Interestingly, Global Times noted the AR500C "could help safeguard China's southwestern borders with India".
The AR500C is neither China’s first unmanned aerial vehicle nor its most sophisticated. China has sold UAVs to the likes of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which are capable of carrying air-to-ground weapons and staying airborne for dozens of hours. Global Times reported the AR500C "has an endurance of five hours, maximum speed of 170 kilometers an hour and a maximum takeoff weight of 500 kilograms", parameters that are inferior to many of China's older UAVs.
However, the AR500C has a distinct advantage: Its operating capability in high-altitude regions. Global Times notes "the AR500C can take off at an elevation of 5,000 meters and has a ceiling of 6,700 meters". The performance parameters of other manned aircraft and UAVs begin to decline when they attempt to take off at higher altitudes. The Global Times also noted the AR500C is more flexible to deploy as it does not need a runway to take off.