China quietly equips new generation hypersonic missiles

SCMP quoted its own sources as saying that the advanced hypersonic missile DF-27 may have been officially put into service by the Chinese military.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) , the Chinese military wants to keep the DF-27's operations and combat readiness secret because the missile is capable of attacking most US military bases in the Asia-Pacific region.

According to SCMP sources, the DF-27 missile was put into service before 2019, but information about this type of missile was previously kept secret. In 2019, China first introduced the DF-17 - the previous generation of the DF-27.

The DF-17 hypersonic missile was introduced by the Chinese military at the 2019 parade. (Photo: EPA)

“The DF-27 has been in service with China’s strategic missile force since before 2019, but the Chinese military did not want to reveal its ‘trump card’ so early,” said an anonymous source of SCMP.

In a report released earlier by the Pentagon, the DF-27 hypersonic missile is capable of attacking military targets in Hawaii and it can completely penetrate the US missile defense system in the region.

So far, the Chinese military has released almost no information about the DF-27.

SCMP cited a post on Chinese social media suggesting that the DF-27 may have participated in drills around Taiwan last August.

SCMP sources added that the DF-27 is designed to carry multiple types of warheads and allow it to attack multiple targets at the same time. In other words, the DF-27 is a hypersonic glide vehicle carrying one or more warheads.

The source said that the DF-27 has similar technical and tactical features to the DF-17, such as a range of more than 1,500 km and can travel at a speed of Mach 5 (more than 6,100 km/h). For comparison, the DF-21D - China's anti-aircraft carrier ballistic missile has a range of up to 1,800 km.

The Pentagon first mentioned the DF-27 in its 2021 annual report, saying it has a range of 5,000 to 8,000 kilometers — enough to strike Hawaii from the Chinese coast.

The missile also appeared in a series of leaked US intelligence documents in early 2023. The documents said the Chinese military had conducted a successful test of the DF-27 on February 25, 2023. The report also concluded that the DF-27 has high-precision strike capabilities and could neutralize US missile defense systems.

The Pentagon report stated that the DF-27 has high accuracy and is capable of penetrating the US missile defense system. (Illustration photo)

SCMP sources also confirmed the information in the Pentagon report but added that China is still conducting tests with the DF-27. Operating a hypersonic missile system is quite complicated.

“With its hypersonic flight and longer range (compared to the DF-17 and DF-26), the testing of the DF-27 must ensure its trajectory is more stable, otherwise its precision strike capability will be affected.”

According to Chinese military expert Song Zhongping, the DF-27 is an upgraded version of the DF-17, while the DF-26 is an upgraded version of the DF-21D.

The DF-26 is known as the “Guam killer” because its range of about 3,500km is enough to reach the US mainland. However, the Chinese military wants a longer-range missile because it does not want to deploy all of its most advanced ballistic missiles in coastal areas, according to SCMP sources.

The DF-27 is part of China's deterrence strategy to strengthen its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy, but it will not target deep inside the US territory, but it can reach neighboring areas such as Hawaii or Alaska.

The US has known about China's DF-27 development plans for several years and has responded by strengthening its missile defense system in Guam with Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems, according to Taiwanese military expert Lu Li-shih.

Range of China's cruise and ballistic missiles according to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). (Photo: CSIS)

“The US has deployed Patriot air defense systems to Guam, but these systems are not capable of detecting and intercepting hypersonic missiles due to their limited interception altitude,” Lu Li-shih said.

“However, the THAAD system can intercept targets like the DF-26 and even the DF-27 when the missile is flying in the middle or outside the atmosphere,” the expert added.

In March, the Pentagon announced it would invest $1.5 billion to enhance Guam's air defense capabilities in fiscal year 2024.

In addition to the THAAD system, Guam is also protected by the Aegis air defense system on destroyers. Meanwhile, the US military is planning to deploy additional surveillance systems and low-altitude air defense missiles to fill in the gaps that Patriot cannot cover.

Source: https://vtc.vn/trung-quoc-am-tham-trang-bi-ten-lua-sieu-thanh-the-he-moi-ar784344.html

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