Watch This Chinese Z-8 Naval Helicopter Fly Just Feet Off The Ground Along A Highway

Published Dec 17, 2020 12:41 PM EST

Here at The War Zone , we’ve spent a fair amount of time examining scarcely believable videos of helicopters in action, doing spectacular things either remarkable , unfortunate , or, in some cases, just plain dangerous . While a surprising low-level flyby is, by now, something of a staple of military chopper videos , this might be the first example we’ve seen that emanates from the People’s Republic of China.

At least two versions of the video, one slightly longer than the other, have been doing the rounds on social media, apparently first being posted to the Chinese micro-blogging website Weibo. Filmed from a car, the footage begins with a People’s Liberation Army Naval Air Force (PLANAF) Changhe Z-8 helicopter flying alongside a highway, heading in the opposite direction. The video then resumes with the helicopter having descended much lower, swooping just over the heads of the occupants in the car, before continuing to follow the road ahead flying so low its wheels nearly touch the surface.

The first view of the Z-8, seen through the driver’s side window., via Twitter

When and where the video was shot is not clear, but the real question is exactly what was going on here? While the road seems free of traffic, other than the car from which the clip was filmed, it’s a highly risky maneuver to pull off without some thorough prior planning and safety measures. With that in mind, it remains possible that this was a prearranged stunt of some kind.

In the first part of one of the videos, with the Z-8 flying alongside the car at what looks like a much safer level, the highway has three lanes, while the portion with the helicopter hurtling over the roof of the car and then carrying on up the road features a two-lane road.

The Z-8 involved is a pretty big helicopter. Its maximum takeoff weight is said to be close to 29,000 pounds, compared to around 22,000 pounds for a U.S. Army UH-60M Black Hawk, and is powered by three engines. The Z-8 was based on the French-designed SA321 Super Frelon , which China acquired in small numbers in the late 1970s.

Land-based and maritime versions of the Z-8 have been fielded by various branches of the People’s Liberation Army for many years, with versions including the Z-8J transport, Z-8S for search and rescue, and Z-8JH for medical evacuation. However, the helicopter in the video seems to be the Z-8C, the latest maritime derivative that’s used for search and rescue, utility, and training.

The C-model features a nose-mounted weather radar, a forward-looking infrared sensor, searchlights, and a reconfigured, box-like engine compartment atop the fuselage. It is also fitted with a crash position indicator, a kind of detachable radio beacon that helps mark the helicopter’s position if it goes down, which is seen below the tail boom, clearly visible as the orange-colored turret in the video.

Andreas Rupprecht, an expert on Chinese military aerospace and friend of The War Zone who tweets as @RupprechtDeino , has suggested that the helicopter’s lack of markings could point to its use by the PLA Navy Marine Corps, which has only relatively begun to receive any kind of rotorcraft. The Marine Corps Z-8Cs are expected to go to sea aboard China’s big new amphibious assault ships, like the Type 075 that you can read more about here .

Ultimately, the Z-8 is expected to be replaced by the Z-18, a considerably updated development, with more modern avionics and a redesigned fuselage, first flown in prototype form in 2010. Naval versions of the Z-18 include the Z-18F for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare and the Z-18J airborne early warning (AEW) variant with a multi-mode active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. The Z-18J AEW helicopter has been seen in the past operating from the deck of the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning .

For now, we simply don’t know whether this highway helicopter stunt was a pre-planned maneuver or some kind of dramatic break from protocol, but we will post any significant updates if and when we receive them.

Contact the author: thomas@thedrive.com

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发布于美国东部时间2020年12月17日下午12:41。

在“战区”栏目，我们花了不少时间研究那些令人难以置信的直升机行动视频，这些视频展现了直升机令人叹为观止的行动，其中一些行动堪称惊人，一些则令人遗憾，还有一些则纯粹是危险的。虽然低空飞行如今已成为军用直升机视频的常见桥段，但这可能是我们见过的第一个来自中华人民共和国的例子。

至少有两个版本的视频在社交媒体上流传，其中一个版本略长于另一个版本，视频最初似乎发布在中国微博网站上。这段视频是从一辆汽车上拍摄的，画面开始时，一架中国人民解放军海军航空兵的昌河Z-8直升机沿着高速公路飞行，方向与汽车相反。随后，视频继续播放，直升机高度大幅降低，几乎掠过车内乘客的头顶，然后继续沿着前方道路飞行，低空飞行，机轮几乎触地。

这是透过驾驶员侧车窗拍摄的Z-8的首张照片，来自推特。

这段视频的拍摄时间和地点尚不清楚，但真正的问题是，当时究竟发生了什么？虽然除了拍摄视频的那辆车之外，道路上似乎没有其他车辆，但如果没有周密的计划和安全措施，贸然进行这样的操作风险极高。考虑到这一点，这不排除是一场事先安排好的特技表演。

在其中一段视频的第一部分中，Z-8 直升机以看起来更安全的高度与汽车并排飞行，高速公路有三条车道；而直升机从汽车车顶上方呼啸而过，然后继续沿道路飞行的那部分，则是一条双车道公路。

此次事件中涉及的Z-8直升机体型相当庞大。据称其最大起飞重量接近29,000磅，而美国陆军UH-60M“黑鹰”直升机的起飞重量约为22,000磅，Z-8由三台发动机提供动力。Z-8以法国设计的SA321“超级黄蜂”直升机为基础，中国在20世纪70年代末期少量采购了该型直升机。

解放军各军种多年来一直装备陆基和海基版本的Z-8直升机，其中包括Z-8J运输型、Z-8S搜救型和Z-8JH医疗后送型。然而，视频中的直升机似乎是Z-8C，这是最新的海基衍生型号，用于搜救、通用和训练。

C型直升机配备了机头安装的气象雷达、前视红外传感器、探照灯，以及位于机身顶部的重新设计的箱形发动机舱。它还装有坠毁位置指示器，这是一种可拆卸的无线电信标，用于在直升机坠毁时标记其位置。该指示器位于尾梁下方，在视频中清晰可见，呈橙色炮塔状。

中国军事航空航天专家、The War Zone 的朋友 Andreas Rupprecht（推特账号为 @RupprechtDeino）认为，这架直升机缺乏标识可能表明它是解放军海军陆战队的装备，而海军陆战队接收旋翼机的时间相对较短。预计海军陆战队的 Z-8C 直升机将部署在中国的新型大型两栖攻击舰上，例如您可以在这里了解更多信息的 075 型两栖攻击舰。

最终，Z-8预计将被Z-18取代。Z-18是一款经过大幅改进的机型，配备了更先进的航空电子设备和重新设计的机身，其原型机于2010年首飞。Z-18的舰载版本包括用于反潜和反水面作战的Z-18F，以及配备多模式有源相控阵雷达（AESA）的Z-18J空中预警（AEW）型。Z-18J空中预警直升机此前曾被目击在中国“辽宁”号航空母舰上执行任务。

目前，我们尚不清楚这次高速公路直升机特技表演是预先计划好的行动，还是某种对既定程序的重大突破，但一旦收到任何重大更新，我们将立即发布。

联系作者：thomas@thedrive.com

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