CTECC and ZTE Redefine Disaster Response with Air-Space-Ground Intelligent Emergency System

• An integrated Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence emergency communications system covers the golden 72 hours
• It provides end-to-end support from large UAV aerial base stations to backpack micro stations and nomadic mobile stations, enabling resilient connectivity and intelligent command
• The solution has been scaled across multiple provinces and proven in extreme disasters

Beijing, China, January 13, 2026 - ZTE Corporation (0763.HK / 000063.SZ), a global leading provider of integrated information and communication technology solutions,  in collaboration with China Telecom, has jointly built an integrated Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence Emergency System, setting a new standard for disaster response.

In recent years, intensifying global climate change has led to a surge in extreme weather events. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has pointed out that during the "golden 72 hours" following a major disaster, the ability to rapidly restore communications directly determines the outcome of rescue operations. When roads are blocked, power grids collapse, and networks go down, the resulting "triple disruption scenario" turns disaster-stricken areas into "information islands", posing severe threats to public safety and rescue command efficiency. In this context, the resilience of communication networks has become the lifeline of emergency response and disaster relief.

In January 2025, China Telecom Group established China Telecom Emergency Communications Co., Ltd. (China Telecom Emergency), aiming to centralize and optimize emergency communications operations. The company integrates strategic emerging business capabilities from Tiantong satellite communications, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology, E-Sirfing See Link, IoT, and Beijing Global Safety Technology Co, Ltd., adopting an integrated Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence technical architecture as its core. Its mission is to enhance its dual-use capabilities for routine and emergency scenarios, provide industry-leading assurance services, actively integrate into the national emergency system, and strive to become the leading force in national emergency communication support.

By leveraging expertise in emergency communications—supported by high- and low-orbit satellite resources, high- to low-altitude UAV capabilities, dedicated emergency network systems, AI computing power, and unified platform operation services—China Telecom Emergency has built an integrated Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence emergency support system.

This system, tailored to emergency scenarios and practical requirements, facilitates on-site support and assurance, multi-dimensional sensing, resource scheduling, intelligent analysis, and decision assistance. It significantly improves the speed and efficiency of emergency response, providing strong communication safeguard to protect people's lives and property.

Air-Ground Collaboration: Building a Scalable New Paradigm for Emergency Communications

As early as 2023, China Telecom Emergency partnered with ZTE to launch the nation's first integrated Air-Space-Ground emergency communication platform based on a large UAV. The platform uses a gasoline-powered heavy UAV with a 200 kg payload capacity, 6 hours of endurance, and a flight speed of 150 km/h. It can carry triple-network compatible base stations, perform vertical take-off and landing without a runway, quickly reach airspace over disaster areas, and function as an "aerial base station" to achieve wide-area signal coverage.

This innovation not only performed exceptionally well in high-altitude tests on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, but also played a critical role in China Telecom's post-disaster network restoration during Super Typhoon—restoring the communication lifeline between disaster-hit areas and the outside world promptly, enabling rescue command and public connectivity, and becoming an "indispensable tool" for rapid communication reconstruction under extreme scenarios.

In 2025, China Telecom Emergency and ZTE further integrated aerial systems, ground systems, and AI-driven intelligence to establish a true Air-Space-Ground collaborative operation model—a modular, combinable, and on-demand deployable emergency communication matrix supporting both active disaster response and post-disaster recovery.

· Wide-Area Rapid Coverage: Large UAVs can carry triple-network  public network base stations and broadband ad-hoc network equipment, enabling rapid full-network support for public communication and dedicated emergency networks. They support thousands of concurrent voice and data users while simultaneously coordinating emergency rescue forces.

· Deep-Penetration Mobile Micro Stations: Lightweight backpack base stations weigh only 10–20 kg, support satellite and fiber backhaul, can be carried on foot into landslides and debris-flows areas inaccessible to vehicles, and can be deployed within 20 minutes, effectively eliminating "last-mile" communication blind spots.

· Long-Term On-Site Support: Nomadic mobile stations integrate the core network, wireless access network, and backhaul system into a single enclosure, supporting voice, video, and  data services. They are suitable for long-term deployment during the post-disaster transition phase, meeting communication needs during reconstruction.

Field-Proven "Aerial Lifeline" in Extreme Scenarios

With extreme weather events increasing each year, flash floods, heavy rains, and typhoons continue to disrupt daily life. Under unified national command, China Telecom Emergency—committed to protecting the public—remains prepared to act against the current danger when needed. In emergency operations, China Telecom Emergency and ZTE jointly deployed UAV platforms to disaster zones. The two parties pooled resources for rapid coordination, applied for airspace, and used UAV equipped with triple-network base stations to swiftly establish stable aerial  signals, restoring communication services in affected areas. In 2025, UAV operations exceeded 20 sorties, supporting over 10,000 mobile user connections, with more than 6,000 minutes of accumulated voice communication. This system has been fully integrated into the national Integrated Full-Network Access Platform, enabling unified traffic coordination among the three major operators and efficient inter-department, inter-regional, and inter-network collaboration. It forms a complete emergency communication chain covering the entire golden 72-hour window.

Beyond communications, UAV equipped with high-definition optical pods transmitted real-time disaster imagery. AI computing analyzed these data streams, identified weak-signal regions, and—through the system's "intelligent brain", Yifeng Emergency Communication Integrated Operations Platform—enabled intelligent service scheduling, automated disaster analytics, and dynamic allocation of rescue resources. This strengthened intelligent support throughout the golden 72-hour period, realizing a combined model of "communication restoration + intelligent operations".

The year's emergency missions proved the operational effectiveness of the Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence model, earning widespread recognition as a "fully adaptive emergency communication support system for real-world scenarios".

Multi-Party Collaboration and Large-scale Deployment Strengthening National Emergency Capabilities

In 2025, the integrated emergency communication solution demonstrated outstanding results across China Telecom networks in Hebei Province, Hainan Province, and Guizhou Province.

UAV carrying emergency base stations provided stable aerial coverage, while ground teams restored local communications using backpack base stations—effectively supporting rescue command and public communication.

As of now, with strong support from China Telecom Group and provincial branches,  the integrated solution has now been deployed in 11 provinces, and applied in numerous major disaster relief operations. Additionally, nomadic mobile stations have been deployed in 11 provinces to support high-capacity events such as sports games and concerts.

These achievements show that the Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence solution has progressed from technical validation to scaled and normalized deployment, becoming one of the core assets safeguarding China Telecom's network security and a key component of the national emergency communication system.

Elastic Growth: Building a Continuously Evolving Emergency Communication Ecosystem

Compared with traditional emergency communication, the innovative strength of the integrated Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence emergency communication solution lies in its systematic integration and scalable architecture. In the future, this solution will continue to evolve by optimizing equipment for "small, fast, agile, light, and convenient" deployment,  deepening AI computing power assistance, and enhancing the application efficiency of the integrated operational platform, committed to building a globally leading resilient emergency network. 

The collaborative Air-Space-Ground-Intelligence framework built by both parties is transforming emergency communications from passive repair to proactive reconstruction, offering a replicable and scalable technology paradigm for global disaster response and contributing to a more resilient global emergency communication network, so that technology can truly become a powerful shield that safeguards lives.

Furthermore, In 2026, China Telecom Emergency will continue working with ZTE as a core technology partner across three dimensions: network architecture, equipment research and development, and scenario adaptation. Looking ahead, both sides will continue jointly developing next-generation disaster prevention and mitigation technologies, including AI-driven early warning, big data + super base stations, and unmanned cluster airdrop systems, supporting the construction of national and regional emergency support centers and leading the development of the new quality productive forces in emergency communications, thus helping build a more resilient and intelligent emergency communication network.