Chinese engineers have figured out how drones will dodge missiles: a new "escape system" with side boosters

Chinese aerospace engineers have unveiled a technology that could completely change the rules of the game for combat drones. Their idea is simple but ingenious: to teach drones to evade missiles like fighter jets in cool action movies. And they do this with the help of small side rocket boosters built directly into the body of the device.

Imagine: a drone is flying along the course, and suddenly an air defense missile is already a few meters away. In the past, that would have been the end. But now, a fraction of a second before the hit, compact side boosters are triggered — and the drone will abruptly "jerk" to the side, changing its trajectory so abruptly that the rocket simply does not have time to correct course. It's as if you suddenly jumped to the left when you already felt the wind blowing from the impact.

The developers call this system the "end zone attack evasion system" — it sounds like something out of fiction, but it's already a real concept. The main trump card is absolute unpredictability. Air defense missiles, even the most modern ones, calculate the trajectory and plot a course to intercept. And if the target suddenly makes a maneuver with an acceleration of several G, like a fighter, the chance of defeat drops sharply.

According to the developers, this technology can increase the survival rate of drones in areas with dense air defenses to almost 90%. This is a huge breakthrough. After all, the longer the drone stays in the air, the more it can scout, how many targets to hit, and how much data to transmit.

Of course, this is not a miracle solution. Boosters mean extra weight, fuel consumption, and reduced flight time. And you can only use them once or twice per mission. But at a critical moment — when the drone is already in the focus of an enemy anti—aircraft gunner - these half a second and a couple of meters can decide everything.

If the concept reaches mass production, it will become the new standard for attack and reconnaissance drones. And then the battlefield will change: drones will become not just expendable, but dexterous, impact-resistant "hunters" who not only fly, but dance between missiles.