Taiwan’s Iran-style attack drone could swamp PLA air defences: analysts

South China Morning Post Wednesday 21 October 2026, 14:00 UTC By Gabriel Dominguez 1 min read

Key Points

A flight-tested attack drone similar to Iran’s Shahed model that its Taiwanese maker says could reach military targets in mainland China is meant to swamp PLA air defences, analysts said. Drawing on battlefield lessons from Ukraine and the Middle East, military experts broadly agree on the utility of such low-cost systems but differ on how it could be deployed in a conflict with Beijing should it enter service. While some see greater value in targeting People’s Liberation Army forces in the...

Taiwan (LOCATION) Iran (LOCATION) PLA (ORG) Taiwanese (ORG) China (LOCATION) Ukraine (LOCATION) the Middle East (LOCATION) Beijing (LOCATION) People’s Liberation Army (ORG)

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Taiwan’s Iran-style attack drone could swamp PLA air defences: analysts

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