VIENTIANE, Sept. 9 (Xinhua) -- Search-and-rescue drones took to the skies for wide-area aerial reconnaissance, quadruped robotic dogs approached disaster sites to scout the area, and tracked unmanned vehicles advanced to transport "casualties."
On Wednesday, the China-Laos "Peace Train-2026" joint humanitarian medical rescue exercise, currently underway in the Lao capital Vientiane, entered the mixed-unit joint training phase. For the first time, unmanned intelligent equipment was deployed systematically to conduct concurrent casualty search and rescue, evacuation and transport, and supply delivery. The integration of unmanned equipment has upgraded the medical rescue model on the training ground.
Xu Chao, a participating team member, explained that the training adhered to a "human-centric" philosophy while using unmanned equipment to enhance capabilities. Unmanned systems were deployed throughout the entire rescue and treatment process, ranging from frontline casualty search and rescue and the precision delivery of emergency supplies to rapid casualty evacuation and follow-up treatment at rear medical facilities, he said.
Xu noted that unmanned assets, including drones, robot dogs, and unmanned vehicles, can enter hazardous areas to carry out search-and-rescue missions, helping personnel respond more quickly and efficiently. These systems are designed to meet the demands of complex tasks, improve the efficiency of casualty search and rescue and long-distance evacuation, and enhance the timeliness of search-and-rescue and evacuation operations through real-time detection and rapid response, he added.
"This training with unmanned equipment marks a critical step forward in the integrated use of unmanned intelligent medical rescue forces," said Chen Peizheng, a Chinese exercise official. ■