China has achieved early deployment of anti-carrier DF-21 missile

[ErnstBlofeld]

East-Asia-Intel.com:

After months of saying little about testing of a new Chinese anti-ship ballistic missile designed to sink U.S. aircraft carriers, the commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific acknowledge that the DF-21D precision-guided missile reached "initial operating capability," or early-stage deployment.

Adm. Robert F. Willard, the commander, disclosed to a Japanese newspaper that he defined IOC as "I think China would perceive that it has an operational capability now, but they continue to develop it."
"I would gauge it as about the equivalent of a U.S. system that has achieved IOC," he said.

The U.S. deployment assessment is based on China's press reports and continued testing by China, he said.

The "D" version of China's DF-21 medium-range missile, involves firing the mobile missile into space, returning it into the atmosphere and then maneuvering it to its target.

Military officials consider using ballistic missiles against ships at sea to be a difficult task that requires a variety of air, sea and space sensors, navigation systems and precision guidance technology, capabilities not typical of other Chinese missiles.

[ErnstBlofeld]

Path of DF-21D missile. It similar to the Pershing II missile.The Pershing II has adjustable second stage control fins for terminal maneuver. U.S. Government sources, and many Chinese sources, state that a Chinese ASBM would be based on the CSS-5.

[Rokke]

I wonder if it works. Surely they must have tested it against something. I doubt it was defended by an SM-3.

[ErnstBlofeld]

Surely they must have tested it against something. I doubt it was defended by an SM-3.

 

Considerable Chinese research on irregular (“wavy”) ASBM/ballistic missile trajectories and penetration aids (PENAIDS) to defeat missile defense suggests that this is an area of ongoing concern.The biggest question though is the missile have multiple sensors to aplply to the missile to make it sucessful.