A New Advanced Firefighting Device for 100m High-rise Buildings! Firefighting Drone Developed by Weihang Technology with the Assistance of CIMC Makes Global Debut

On July 23, CCTV News Channel’s “Live News” reported that a globally pioneering ducted fan high-altitude tethered firefighting drone system was unveiled at the Sichuan Zigong Aviation Industrial Park. This innovative achievement, jointly developed by Beijing Weiheng Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Weihang Technology”) and Shenyang Jietong, a subsidiary of CIMC Group, through strategic cooperation, can effectively address the challenge of extinguishing fires in 100m high-rise buildings, providing a new solution for urban super high-rise fire response.

Fires in high-rise buildings have long been a major challenge in firefighting and rescue due to the height, rapid spread of flames, and high difficulty in suppression. Weihang Technology, specializing in low-altitude economy and emergency rescue technologies, and Shenyang Jietong, specializing in firefighting equipment manufacturing, have joined efforts to develop this new firefighting drone system, which features rapid response, high-altitude operation, and sustained suppression capabilities.

The system integrates the core advantages of low-altitude firefighting drones and fire trucks. With an overall length not exceeding 10 meters and a width not exceeding 2.5 meters, it can manoeuvre flexibly through narrow urban alleys and residential compounds. Upon receiving an emergency call, it can immediately arrive at the fire scene and commence operations. The drone, connected to the fire truck, can ascend to a height of 100 meters within one minute to conduct firefighting tasks, with a response speed significantly faster than the deployment time of traditional water tower fire trucks.

Having passed durability tests, the drone, powered by a tethered cable, can operate for over 6 hours per mission, withstand wind speeds of up to level 6 and has an effective payload capacity of 250-400kg, enabling real “aerial hard control” of fires in urban high-rise buildings.

In terms of firefighting capability, the drone can spray water, foam, and other extinguishing agents, with an effective spraying distance of over 45 meters. It performs prolonged firefighting operations at a sustained liquid flow rate of 20-30 liters/second. Its extinguishing power is on par with top-tier traditional fire trucks, but with significantly faster response time, truly achieving rapid and efficient fire suppression.

It is worth noting that drones have traditionally played a supporting role in firefighting operations, such as fire scene reconnaissance and dropping fire extinguishing bombs. However, this globally pioneering drone system, primarily designed for firefighting, marks the first time drones have become the “main force” in fire suppression.

According to Cao Baichun, the general manager of Shenyang Jietong under CIMC, despite continuous breakthroughs in firefighting equipment technologies in recent years, complex fire scenes often encounter the dilemma of “cannot enter, cannot ascend, cannot stop, cannot extinguish’’, resulting in ineffective control of losses and casualties from high-rise fires. This system, by complementing existing water tower fire trucks through coordinated ground-air operations, creates a new integrated firefighting model and offers a more comprehensive solution for urban fire safety.

It is understood that this new firefighting drone will soon transition from technical research and development to mass production and sales, and is expected to be deployed on rescue frontlines by the end of this year.