Norinco Luca, the world's most powerful cargo drone, completes its maiden flight in Zhengzhou, Henan province, on March 31, 3026. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The world's most powerful cargo drone, built by China North Industries Group Corp, conducted its first flight on Tuesday in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province.

A prototype of the Norinco Luca unmanned transport aircraft took off at 9:30 am from the Zhengzhou Shangjie Airport and stayed in the air for about 30 minutes before landing at the same site. Engineers checked the model's flight control, avionics, electronic and power systems and achieved desired results, according to Norinco UAS, the drone's developer and a Beijing-based subsidiary of China North Industries Group Corp.

In a news release, it was stated that the entire flight was controlled by the aircraft's intelligent systems and monitored by human controllers.

Norinco Luca, the world's most powerful cargo drone, completes its maiden flight in Zhengzhou, Henan province, on March 31, 3026. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The Norinco Luca measures 17 meters long with a wingspan of 25 meters, and has a takeoff weight of 7 metric tons.

The drone boasts a maximum payload capacity of 3.5 tons, equivalent to the total weight of 50 adult individuals. It can carry over 1,700 cotton coats or 700 disaster-relief tents in a single trip, delivering supplies over long distances. With a maximum range of more than 3,000 kilometers — roughly equivalent to a non-stop direct flight from Beijing to Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

It can take off and land on runways shorter than 500 meters and can use poorly conditioned airports such as those in plateaus and islands.

The aircraft is equipped with an 18-cubic-meter cargo bay that can be opened from both the front and rear sides. The turnaround time can be completed in as fast as 15 minutes, greatly improving logistics turnover efficiency, according to its designers.

Norinco Luca, the world's most powerful cargo drone, completes its maiden flight in Zhengzhou, Henan province, on March 31, 3026. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Norinco Luca, the world's most powerful cargo drone, completes its maiden flight in Zhengzhou, Henan province, on March 31, 3026. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]