Role & capabilities
- Reconnaissance aircraft
- Primary domain
- Air
- System type
- Reconnaissance aircraft
- Developer / manufacturer
- AVIC / Chengdu aircraft industry
- Origin / production countries
- China
- Other names
- Wing Loong-10; WL-10; Wuzhen-10; Cloud Shadow lineage
- Variants / configurations
- WZ-10 military configuration; Wing Loong-10 / Cloud Shadow lineage; specifications may differ
- Operators / programme customers
- China — military flight activity documented
Evidence & current status
Public flight activity is documented by Japan. Published performance figures are attributed research data; individual variants and configurations are not assumed identical.
WZ-10 is a Chinese high-altitude unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. China's defence ministry described it publicly at Airshow China 2024, including its electronic-reconnaissance role. Japan's 2025 defence reference chronology separately records a WZ-10 flight in May 2024. The combination establishes public aircraft activity without depending solely on manufacturer promotional claims.
The US Air University's 2025 industrial study places WZ-10 within the Wing Loong-10 lineage and the Chengdu industrial organisation. That research quotes endurance and altitude figures, which are retained as attributed published assessments. They are not direct measurements of an aircraft observed by Japan, nor proof that every export or earlier prototype version has the same equipment.
Naming deserves particular care: Cloud Shadow and Wing Loong-10 are related programme labels, while WZ-10 can also be confused in English reporting with a similarly rendered helicopter designation. This record concerns the unmanned fixed-wing reconnaissance family. Its operator identity is broader than its individual configuration data; specific payload fits, fleet quantities and variant-level performance still require further primary disclosure.
Sourced specifications
Figures apply to the named configuration. Maximum values are not guaranteed operating performance.
| Specification | Reported value | Context & source |
|---|---|---|
| Airframe | High-altitude fixed-wing reconnaissance aircraft | US government industrial study. Source ↗ |
| Launch / recovery | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Propulsion | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Dimensions | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Mass | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Endurance | 20 hours | Figure quoted in a 2025 government research assessment; not independently measured or universal across variants. Source ↗ |
| Range | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Speed | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Altitude | 15,000 m | Figure quoted in a 2025 government research assessment. Source ↗ |
| Payload | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
| Sensors | Electronic reconnaissance described publicly | Official role description; no detailed sensor-performance claim. Source ↗ |
| Communications / navigation | Not established from the reviewed public sources. | Public data gap; no estimate or neighbouring variant value substituted. Source ↗ |
Documented milestones
Official airshow description
China's defence ministry published a description of the WZ-10 exhibited at Airshow China 2024.
Read the announcement ↗Flight activity independently recorded
Japan's defence chronology records activity by the UAV family.
Read the announcement ↗
Publication history
- — Added a sourced global catalogue profile with configuration-specific data and explicit evidence limits.
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Follow the evidence
Source types identify who makes the claim. Programme milestones and supplier statements should be read in context.