Ukraine, Israel buying Chinese civilian drones for combat use; shun US military-grade drones.

Ukrainian and IDF forces strongly prefer Chinese drones to US-built drones, in their respective combat operations. This according to reporting by the Wall Street Journal since February of last year.

US-built drone weapons are less reliable, more easily jammed by Electronic Warfare efforts, and do not fly as far or with payloads as advertised. China drones are also far less costly.

The Chinese-built drones are commercial grade, and are purchased off-the-shelf by volunteers who then send them to either Ukraine or Israel, where they are repurposed for combat use. The main producer of these Chinese-built drones, DJI of Shenzhen, strongly opposes the use of their equipment in military applications.

The strong preference of allied countries for Chinese civilian drones over American military drones, and the stark differences in battlefield performance, do lead to very disturbing questions; namely, how much better still are Chinese military-grade drones? How were the Russians able to overwhelm the GPS signals in the US-made drones? If the US companies that build our drones admit publicly the enormous challenges they face, what concerns do they share only privately?

Resources and links:
WSJ, How American drones failed to turn the tide in Ukraine

WSJ, Drones are giving Ukraine a wartime edge

WSJ, Chinese, American--it doesn't matter. Israel wants inexpensive drones

[valuedent]

slowly, but in China" is not a laughing matter anymore, especially in the high tech electronic industries!!

[isaacisaac]

Chinese drones bought at toy store is better than our military ones. Wow!

[victorteo]

Ukraine, Israel buying Chinese civilian drones for combat use! The US manufacture junk drones. Even Chinese toy drones are better than US military grade drones! 😂😂😂😂😂

[tamuhoi]

Not surprised DJI don't want their drone used in combat, don't forget the Chinese do invente gunpowder just for fun.

[GoBroke]

There's DJI drones that are the size of mini go-karts used by farmers to fertilizes crops in China. It's amazing.

[vidsurf]

If a chinese toy works better than US military grade drones, just imagine the capabilities of Chinese military ones equipped more advanced tech...

[sbkarajan]

I may have said before, but during Korean War, Chines PLA with 600k soldiers defeated and pushed back 2 million US + UN army in a matter of weeks.

Chinese army was only equipped with rifles, machine guns, mortars, and shovels.
They dug tunnels for safety and surprise attack, and also warmth during the winter.

US and UN army were equipped with tanks, heavy guns, air support, and all the high tech equipment, and lost.
They had numerical and technological superiority, but a lot of them froze to death.

Now, China has better weapons, hypersonic missiles, nukes, and fancy new jet fighters and destroyers and cyber war capabilities.
Not hard to guess who'd win.

[jameswong]

This is another china high quality and affordable product which benefit the world, the world should appreciates and thank china . Apple phone owned the world most expensive company worth 2.3 trillion usd where no other global brand can compete, luckily and thank God we have china to produce affordable and quality phones where everyone can affort and enjoy technology brings .
Thank you China and keep up the good works ❤

[garyevergreen]

The Chinese made it clear repeatedly that they want no war but peace, though they've got everything that's needed for one!

[nsng]

All the people I know who are into drone videography and photography use DJI. They also manufacture drones that cost thousands of $ where you can mount professional video cameras. In fact, they have expanded into drones for agriculture use, high voltage power lines inspection, etc.

Frank Wang Tao, who founded DJI did his Master's thesis in drone controls technology. He started DJI and ran it out from his dorm at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Together with a few friends he went to Shenzhen to start his company. As they say, the rest is history. DJI has over 70% share in the consumer drone market. He is the first drone billionaire.

The U.S. Army decided to build their own drones after blacklisting DJI. However, the drones they built were several times more expensive than DJI and not even half as good!

[fredfrond]

The US bans dji drones with some of the best infra-red and mapping capabilities in the world.🙈 these drones are also very inexpensive when compared US made weapons grade drones 🙄. 🙉😂

[Ludak]

"Russians will never have this technology!" -Harry Truman, 1945. edit: DJI holds all the major (good ones) patents on drones, that's one of the reasons the US can't make them. It goes from blades on rotors, rotors, certain control systems etc. Being in "good relations with China" US can't hope China will ever allow DJI to sell the rights to use patents that the US needs. So in a nutshell, the US foreign policy put the US in a tough spot that they earned with the arrogance, lying and pissing off the whole world. Enjoy your rewards, there are more to come after Yellen threatened China yesterday.

[DW-oply]

I stopped being pro American in 1990s...

This does not surprise me one bit

[jessicayoung]

Is this what Janet Yelling talking about China's over capacity.

[lv]

China had banned the export of certain types of drone after the war started.

[pohmoh]

These are civilian drones. Imagine China military grade equipments

[vestasharp]

DJI drones are banned in the US, shouldn't they be banned in Israel as well.

[calvinblue]

China military drones have AI in them..
And PLA has drones of the shape of eagles, the birds, sharks that can home in on enemy forces without being distinguished.
Drones that look like eagles, flying like eagles in intricate fashion.
Chinese military has Drone Swarms that acts like insect Swarms, moving without collision and 'thinking' independently

[thomaslthomas]

51 years ago the US put a man on the moon. Now we can barely put a ladder on a wall.

[deepone]

Shouldnt Yellen warn the Chinese about such sales to Ukraine and Israel, threatening sanctions? Hiporcrisy and double standards?