Some of China’s 11,000 mega bridges could be at risk from small drones: study
Por Victoria Bela — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement Science China Science Some of China’s 11,000 mega bridges could be at risk from small drones: study
Chinese researchers simulate attacks on a typical suspension bridge and find a precisely targeted small strike could trigger collapse
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Victoria Bela Published: 4:00pm, 21 Sep 2026 Updated: 4:58pm, 21 Sep 2026 Scientists in China have simulated a drone attack on one of the country’s major suspension bridges to determine the vulnerability of key transport hubs to modern warfare tactics. The researchers found that a drone carrying just 30kg (66lbs) of TNT could trigger a bridge collapse if it detonated within inches of the main suspension cable at the point where it meets a support tower. The targeted bridge strikes that have featured in Russia’s war on Ukraine show that warfare has shifted from mass firepower to precision strikes, turning once hard-to-reach structures into prime targets, they said.
“These events starkly reveal the extreme vulnerability of modern bridges to unconventional explosive attacks,” the team wrote in a paper published in the September issue of the Chinese-language Journal of Railway Science and Engineering.
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