Newly emerged video footage shared on X by Chadian commentator Mahamat M Adam Bechir indicates the Chadian Air Force has likely added Chinese-made Caihong-4 (CH-4) armed drones to its operational fleet.
Filmed at Abéché Airbase in eastern Chad, the footage shows at least four fully assembled CH-4 airframes parked on the apron beside ground support equipment. Although N'Djamena has not formally announced the procurement, the presence of complete aircraft confirms deliveries have taken place and integration is underway, as Unmanned Africa reported.
Developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation as a lower-cost alternative to the U.S. MQ-1 Predator, the CH-4 is a medium-altitude, long-endurance platform that first flew in 2011. With an 18-meter wingspan and a takeoff weight of roughly 1,330 kilograms, it can remain airborne up to 40 hours in reconnaissance configuration, dropping to about 14 hours when fully armed.
Its underwing hardpoints carry up to 345 kilograms of payload, including AR-1 laser-guided missiles and FT-9 guided bombs, letting operators strike ground targets from above 5,000 meters—beyond the reach of shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles.
Staging these drones at Abéché gives Chadian planners an immediate advantage across several strategic sectors. The base is the primary military gateway to eastern Chad, within rapid response distance of Sudan's Darfur region, where spillover from ongoing civil conflict creates continuous security challenges.
The CH-4's radius also extends coverage north toward the Tibesti Mountains, a region historically used by rebel formations. The deployment comes as the 1,300-kilometer Chad–Sudan border remains structurally porous with limited surveillance capacity. Some analysts have tied the drones to a UAE-backed military logistics pipeline into northeast Chad, positioning them for operations along the Darfur border.
The acquisition reflects N'Djamena's broader effort to diversify its uncrewed inventory. In recent years, Chad has integrated Turkish platforms, including Bayraktar TB2, Aksungur, and Anka drones delivered by Turkish Aerospace, to reinforce counter-insurgency operations against Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province in the Lake Chad Basin.
By procuring Chinese medium-altitude platforms, Chad joins a growing list of African operators, including Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, that rely on Beijing for cost-effective UAVs.
