BEIJING, July 3 -- China's air force on Friday morning sent a drone to check an area hit by an earthquake in Xinjiang, the first mission of this kind by the country's military unmanned aerial vehicles.

Shen Jinke, the spokesperson of the People's Liberation Armyair force, said the drone was sent to the area at 11:10 a.m. It sent back data in real time during the 100-minute flight.

The quake rocked Pishan County of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at 9:07 a.m., with its epicenter recorded at 37.6 degrees north and 78.2 degrees east. It struck at a depth of 10 km, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC).

Four people have been dead and 48 others injured, according to local authorities.