Two thousand drones filled the night sky above Zhuhai in Guangdong province on Sunday, forming large-scale images of aircraft during a public performance tied to the upcoming anniversary of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force.
The show took place at Haitian Park, where crowds gathered along the shoreline to watch the aircraft-shaped formations. It served as a warm-up event for the 77th anniversary of the PLA Air Force, scheduled for November 11, while also promoting the next edition of Airshow China.
Aerial formations depict the J-20
The performance opened with eight J-20 fighter jets arranged in an arrow formation. The drones also created particle streams from the aircraft’s tail-nozzle areas to simulate high-speed flight, turning the formation into a moving representation rather than a static outline.
- Fleet: 2,000 drones
- Location: Haitian Park, Zhuhai, Guangdong province
- Featured aircraft: Eight J-20 fighters in formation
- Occasion: The PLA Air Force’s upcoming 77th anniversary
The J-20 was presented as a central visual motif for the event. The performance highlighted China’s advances in stealth technology and connected the drone display with the country’s military aviation identity. The J-20 made its first public appearance at the 11th Airshow China in 2016 and has since become a symbol of what the PLA Air Force describes as its strategic transformation.
Drone shows remain part of the exhibition buildup
The Zhuhai event also functioned as an invitation to the forthcoming aviation exhibition, formally known as the 16th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition. The performance used the same city that hosts the show to direct public attention toward the event and its international ambitions.
Large-scale drone displays can place hundreds or thousands of aircraft into coordinated visual patterns, allowing organizers to depict vehicles, symbols and motion in the sky without using fireworks. In Zhuhai, the format was used to reproduce military aircraft and convey a message about the PLA Air Force’s technology and development.
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Performance size | 2,000 drones |
| Primary image | Eight J-20 fighter jets |
| Venue | Haitian Park, Zhuhai |
| Related event | 16th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition |
