A MYSTERIOUS hypersonic drone has been spotted at a Chinese airbase, it was reported.
The new images come as the Pentagon is probing whether Beijing's advanced aircraft - which could be operated with artificial intelligence - are the UFOs that have been buzzing US military aircraft.
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The mysterious Chinese drone 5
A triangle shaped object spotted by a US warship 5
The Sharp Sword hypersonic drone on parade in Beijing Credit: AFP or licensors
China has long believed to have drones capable operating at hypersonic speeds and US investigators have said they could be the mysterious objects filmed in the skies near warships and fighter aircraft.
Now new pictures have emerged showing what specialist defence website EurAsian Times believes is a Chinese hypersonic drone, possibly the Sharp Sword.
The images were taken at the Malan airbase in Xinjiang province and show a variety of drones lined up on a runway with the distinctive triangular outline of the Sharp Sword visible.
The airbase known to be on the leading edge of the country's unmanned military aircraft development efforts, reports The Drive.
China put considerable efforts into developing drones for use both in the air and sea, teaming them with Artificial Intelligence to make them capable of operating without human input.
That investment led the Pentagon in its recent report into UFOs to suggest Chinese advances drones could be mysterious objects buzzing US military aircraft.
The report entitled Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, detailed what the government understands about a number of mysterious flying objects.
The nine-page report says "some UAP may be technologies deployed by China, Russia, another nation, or a non-governmental entity”.
Earlier this year, the Pentagon has admitted the US Navy filmed a triangle shaped UFO swooping above two warships.
Startling footage captured by a US Navy destroyer using night vision cameras appears to show several mysterious flashing objects in the skies.
Startling footage captured by a US Navy destroyer using night vision cameras appears to show several mysterious flashing objects in the skies.
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The Malan airbase is at the leading edge of China's drone programme
The view that they could be Chinese hypersonic drones is backed by Nick Pope, who investigated UFOs for the UK Ministry of Defence.
Pentagon investigators were convinced that the majority of the "unidentified aerial phenomenon" were physical objects, the official said.
"We absolutely do believe what we're seeing are not simply sensor artifacts. These are things that physically exist," they said, adding that 80 percent of the incidents included data from more than one sensor.
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The first reports to be confirmed by the Pentagon date back to a now-infamous event in 2004.
It unfolded before the eyes of two warplane pilots from aircraft carrier USS Nimitz which was on a routine training mission in the Pacific Ocean off San Diego, California.
Pilots described seeing ‘tic-tac’ like objects the sky that were filmed by on-board cameras.
Terminator-style AI drone 'hunted down' human targets without orders'