A visitor looks at two drones produced by Chinese company Space Geodata on September 16 at an aviation expo in Beijing. (Photo: Li Hao/GT)
As Aviation Expo China 2015 came to an end over the weekend, the nation's booming unmanned aircraft system (UAS) industry was put under the microscope, with experts and industry leaders discussing the absence of strong regulation and threats to national security.
This year was the first time that UAS had its own section at the expo, and as such this sector received a great deal of attention from the media and expo visitors, especially the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) display which featured a model of Wing Loong I, a drone which was included in the Beijing military parade on September 3.
By late Friday, 12 of the 30 exhibitors received orders totaling more than 800 drones during the four-day expo, according to an expo media officer.
The Chinese middle-class is becoming increasingly aware of drones and so are entrepreneurs, which has spurred job creation in the UAS industry, Peter van Blyenburgh, president of UAS International, told the Global Times at the expo.
"China has a number of manufacturers producing a large quantity of remotely piloted aircraft systems. The largest quantity manufacturer in the world is in China but it's selling more outside of China than inside of China," said the Dutchman, adding that there is so far no official data on the drone industry in China.
Industrial purposes
Zhang Muhan, an engineer with a Shanghai-based UAS start-up, told the Global Times that his company believes in the vast potential of the drone market in China, even though it may still be immature and poorly-regulated.
"Technology giants like AVIC put most of their investment into products for military use, including UAS, but luckily they have left a large part of civilian market for us," Zhang said.
"What China boasts is its unmanned aircraft for personal use, but it still lags far behind international UAS manufacturers in products for industrial use, which is also reflected at the expo," Wang Haiyang, an expo visitor and UAS engineer, told the Global Times, referring to the overlapping functions of products from different companies.
Most exhibitors said their products could be or have been used by either agricultural or geoinformation authorities. Some also claimed that their aircraft have helped police with surveillance and hunting fugitives.
Yang Hong, deputy general manager of Hiwing General Aviation Equipment, told the Global Times that the company's unmanned aircraft have been used for surveying and mapping of up to 60 percent of Chinese territories, including the Diaoyu Islands.
Unsafe flight
While many exhibitors showed off their innovative technology, van Blyenburgh pointed out that China's innovation advantage is in "expensive toys and low-end professional drones." Moreover, he said that the majority of exhibitors have not realized that they are part of the aviation sector.
The president added that while most companies are able to bring new technologies to the market, they do not realize their responsibilities and liabilities. Nor do they understand the rules of the air, he claimed.
"They don't know the risks. If a private company gets into an accident, their insurance doesn't cover them as they are flying illegally," he said, adding that less than 50 percent of non-military drones are insured.
Zhang agreed that technology and investment in manufacturing a product that can fly is only one small part of the business. "Much more is required for airworthiness - to check and prove that your product is reliable and safe. For example, all the screws on a drone should go through flaw detection. Being an aircraft, there is no room for any mistakes."
Some manufacturers are selling drones for industrial purposes that have not undergone strict safety checks, as they simply see it as an easy way to make money, a UAS industry insider who requested anonymity, told the Global Times.
"Some so-called drones may even be pieced together from components bought online. It is true that there are no industrial standards in China for drone manufacturers, but at least they can use other countries' standards as a reference," said the insider.
Ulterior motives
Foreign and Chinese experts also renewed their call at a forum on the sidelines of the expo for the urgent implementation of specific regulations on the drone industry to avoid social problems including the invasion of privacy and terror attacks.
Meanwhile, several companies have set up UAS operator training schools, but few take security precautions to ensure they are not teaching people with criminal backgrounds.
Apart from offering free training to its customers, Beijing Viga Tech this year began to offer three weeks of training for 20,000 yuan ($3,140) to anyone that can pay for it. The company has so far trained 40 people, most of whom have to work in remote areas for surveying and mapping, according to Wang Bin, a senior account manager at the company.
Wang admitted that his company does not run a criminal record checks on the people who apply for training. They simply assess applicants' base of knowledge to decide whether they will be able to complete the course within three weeks.
"Otherwise this will come between our company and profits. Besides, one cannot guarantee a product will not be used for ulterior purpose. It is the same if you are a knife-seller and somebody uses your knife to kill someone. There is nothing you can do," Wang said.
"An average drone can carry up to one kilogram. It could be carrying a camera, but it could also be carrying TNT or sulphuric acid. Imagine what would happen if the drone flies over a crowd and drops its load," an aviation expert who requested anonymity told the Global Times.
"Even a camera-carrying drone, its silent motion can also allow those with ulterior motives to track people or let it hover right outside your window," he added.
