3 Military Tech Experts Removed From China’s Top Engineering Academy

3 Military Tech Experts Removed From China’s Top Engineering Academy - Radar, missile, and nuclear specialists disappear from China’s top engineering body as a broader shake-up spreads across the defense industry.

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Mar 17, 2026 - 10:49
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3 Military Tech Experts Removed From China’s Top Engineering Academy

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Three Chinese military technology experts have been removed from the official roster of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, according to its website, in a move that comes amid an ongoing purge within China’s defense industry.

Radar scientist Wu Manqing, missile guidance specialist Wei Yiyin, and nuclear weapons engineer Zhao Xiangeng no longer appear on the academy’s list of 989 members.

Commentators on Chinese online media NetEase on March 14 were the first to report that the three academicians’ profiles had been removed from the academy’s website.

All three men have extensive careers in China’s military-industrial system, and the organizations they previously worked for have been affected by a broader wave of investigations and leadership shake-ups in recent years.

Their Backgrounds

Wu was removed from his position as vice president of the Chinese Academy of Engineering in July 2025 by China’s State Council, according to Chinese state media Xinhua News Agency.

Chinese financial news outlet Caixin reported in October 2024 that Wu and former China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC) Chairman Chen Zhaoxiong had both been taken away by authorities. The report was later removed from the website, and the company did not comment publicly.

Wu, born in 1965, is widely known for his work in radar technology and networked information systems. He played a key role in developing radar systems for the Chinese airborne early warning aircraft KJ-500.

He spent more than three decades working at CETC, a major state-owned defense contractor involved in projects, including China’s satellite systems.

Several company executives have faced investigations in recent years, including deputy general manager He Wenzhong, who was placed under investigation in 2024.

Wei spent much of his career at the state-owned defense conglomerate China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (SASIC).

Born in 1962, Wei worked on cruise missile design and guidance systems and later served as the corporation’s deputy general manager from 2014 to 2023.

SASIC has also experienced a series of leadership shake-ups in recent years. Former Chairman Yuan Jie was removed from his position in April 2024 and has not appeared publicly since. Former General Manager Liu Shiquan lost his membership in China’s national political advisory body in December 2023, while former Deputy General Manager Zhang Hongwen was removed from a provincial legislative post in March 2025.

Wei previously worked alongside several of these officials during his tenure at SASIC.

Zhao, born in 1953, previously served as president of the China Academy of Engineering Physics, the country’s primary research institution for nuclear weapons development.

Zhao was elected to the Chinese Academy of Engineering in 2011 and later served as one of its vice presidents from 2016 to 2018. He was also an alternate member of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee.

Chinese media have described Zhao as one of the key scientific leaders responsible for advancing China’s nuclear weapons research after the country halted nuclear testing.

Defense Sector Purge Expands

The removal of the three academicians comes as China’s anti-corruption and political discipline campaigns have increasingly extended into the country’s defense industry.

According to official announcements and Chinese media reports, at least a dozen major state-owned defense contractors have seen senior executives investigated, removed from office, or disappear from public view in recent years.

Three officials tied to China’s defense and nuclear industries—including former Aviation Industry Corporation of China Chairman Zhou Xinmin and nuclear research figures Luo Qi and Liu Cangli—were removed from their positions as deputies in the regime’s rubber-stamp congress in February.
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The nuclear sector has also been affected. In January, the former General Manager of China National Nuclear Corporation, Gu Jun, was officially placed under investigation.
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Dongfang Hao contributed to this report. 
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