CH-4 Rainbow

The CH-4 (Caihong-4, or Rainbow-4) is a MALE drone developed by China's state aerospace giant CASC, designed as a direct competitor to the American MQ-1 Predator and an affordable strike platform for developing-world export markets. First flown in 2013, the CH-4B variant carries up to 345 kg of ordnance including AR-1 laser-guided missiles, FT-5 precision-guided bombs, and Blue Arrow-7 anti-tank missiles across a 14-hour endurance window at altitudes up to 8,000 meters. Its export price of approximately $1–4M per system, well below Western equivalents, has driven significant proliferation.

CH-4 has been exported to Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Pakistan. Iraqi CH-4s operated by the Iraqi Air Force have been employed against ISIS targets in the Anbar desert and Syrian border regions, representing the first operationally significant use of Chinese strike drones in the Middle East. The CH-4's CASC pedigree and integration with Chinese satellite navigation (BeiDou) and ground control systems gives Chinese industry a data-collection foothold in operational environments across the Middle East and Africa — a strategic consideration alongside the commercial export relationship.