China has scored another win at the International Army Games held in Korla, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The event continued with the Clear Sky contest, involving six countries, namely, China, Russia, Belarus, Egypt, Uzbekistan and Venezuela.

In the "interaction race" stage, air defense teams have to drive armored transport vehicles on a closed track of 9.5 kilometers. Along the route, they go through 12 obstacle courses like an anti-tank ditch and curve turns. This round of competition tests firing abilities against air targets. They're required to fire from six positions, using automatic rifles, anti-aircraft machine guns and portable air defense systems.

This year, five of the contestants are using the China-made Vanguard-2 infrared-guided surface-to-air missile, while Russia is using its Igla-S anti-aircraft missile. Both have a speed of 600 meters per second, with a maximum operational range of six kilometers.

Scores are won if the missile reaches a point within five meters around the target. "The hardest part is locating the target. Since the weather conditions were good today, I could see the target from start to finish. But we usually encounter cloudy weather during training. And if you can't see the target, you can't hit it," Tsering Wonchog, a gunner for the Chinese team in the Clear Sky contest.

The Clear Sky contest also involves shooting simulated helicopter targets and moving targets on the ground. It's a comprehensive test tackling physical, technical and psychological qualities of each participant.

Yang Jinlong, chief of the Chinese team in the Clear Sky contest told CGTN in an interview: "I think that, in real combat training, we should take in certain elements of the 'Clear Sky' contest. For example, in the course of maneuvering, lessons on how to combine elements like physical strength, skills and live fire exercises would improve the level of the army's combat training."

The Clear Sky contest has three stages: mastery, interaction and combined. Now, all eyes are on China for its performance in the combined race on September 1, after claiming victories in the first two races.

(Cover photo: The Chinese team poses for a group photo at the "interaction race" stage of Clear Sky contest held in Korla, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, August 28, 2021. /PLA Army)