A group of Chinese military special forces launches a nighttime assault on a building to eliminate simulated terrorists during a training exercise at an undisclosed location and time. Photo: Screenshot from China Central Television

A recent official media program unveiled some of the equipment and tactics used by a special forces unit of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in a nighttime hostage rescue training drill against terrorists. An expert said that the exercise displayed the PLA special forces’ capabilities in infiltration and key personnel extraction.

Nighttime operations could increase the suddenness of the mission, according to the program aired this week on the military channel of China Central Television (CCTV).

The CCTV program introduced a type of helmet equipped with night vision goggles and IFF (identification, friend or foe) indicators, as well as some types of rifle attachments including a laser pointer and an IR red dot sight.

Upon approaching the designated area on vehicles without using any light, the special forces unit launched a drone, which is also equipped with night vision capability. This allowed the special forces unit to conduct aerial reconnaissance.

The special forces unit first neutralized hostile sentries using sniper rifles from a long range, and simultaneously cut off the power supply of the terrorists’ hideout. This allowed the special forces unit to breach a building and secure the hostage.

After successfully rescuing the hostage, the next mission objective is to evacuate to safety. On the way of evacuation, the drone spotted an outpost of the terrorists, leading to the need to launch an assault.

The special forces unit used crossbows to silently approach and eliminate sentries around the outpost – crossbows do not produce extra noise or flash, making them particularly suitable for nighttime assault operations.

At the same time, three drones quickly approached the terrorist outpost and released bombs that blanketed the entire area, with the special forces unit launching the assault and eliminating all targets, according to the CCTV program.

Zhang Junshe, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Friday that the training exercise featured in the CCTV program is a routine drill. The program showed that the PLA has proficiency in infiltrating terrorist camps, neutralizing terrorists and securing key personnel, with its skills honed to suit the needs of future operations.

The exercise was characterized by its quickness, stealth and precision, Zhang said, noting that multiple PLA services and branches, including the Army, Navy and Air Force, all have special forces units that regularly conduct similar training.