The YJ-21 (Chinese: 鹰击-21; pinyin: Yīngjī-èryāo; lit. 'eagle strike 21') is a Chinese hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile.[1][2] The missile is possibly based on an export-oriented ballistic missile produced by China, named CM-401, but with more advanced features and capabilities.[3] According to a 2023 People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force article, the missile has a cruise speed of Mach 6, and a terminal speed of Mach 10.[4] The missile was revealed by Chinese Navy ahead of its 73rd anniversary, launching from a universal vertical launch system of the Type 055 destroyer.[1][5] An export version called YJ-21E was showcased in Airshow China 2022.[6]

YJ-21
TypeHypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile
Place of originChina
Service history
In service2022–present
Used byPeople's Liberation Army Navy
Specifications
Lengthapprox. 8.3 metres (27 ft)
WarheadConventional

Operational
range
approx. 1,500 kilometres (930 mi) (claimed)
Maximum speed Mach 6 – Mach 10 (7,400–12,300 km/h) (claimed)
Launch
platform

Variants

edit
YJ-21
Ship-launched ballistic missile.
KD-21
Air-launched ballistic missile. First shown in Airshow China 2022. The missile was marked with the designation 2PZD-21 (Chinese: 配重导弹; pinyin: Pèi zhòng dǎo dàn), which indicates that it is a missile counterweight or inert missile.[7] Four missiles can be carried at once by a H-6K bomber. This missile is derived from YJ-21[8] or CM-401 anti-ship ballistic missile.[9] The missile is speculated to serve both land attack and anti-ship roles, and serve alongside the larger KF-21 (NATO designation: CH-AS-X-13) aero-ballistic missile.[10][11]

Operators

edit

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Chan, Minnie (20 April 2022). "Chinese navy shows off hypersonic anti-ship missiles in public". South China Morninhg Post.
  2. ^ Brown, Larisa (14 July 2022). "US building global constellation of satellites to track hypersonic missiles". The Times UK.
  3. ^ Ozberk, Tayfun (20 April 2022). "China Test-Fires New YJ-21 Hypersonic Missile". Naval News.
  4. ^ O'Rourke, Ronald (30 January 2024). China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress (Report). 277. Congressional Research Service. p. 14. RL33153. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  5. ^ Gatopoulos, Alex (22 April 2022). "Russia's Sarmat and China's YJ-21: What the missile tests mean". Aljazeera.
  6. ^ Williams, Zachary (21 November 2022). "Takeaways From China's Zhuhai Air Show 2022". The Diplomat.
  7. ^ "Chinese bomber launches new ballistic missile". Janes. 3 May 2024. Archived from the original on 10 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Chinese H-6K bomber now carries twice the 2PZD-21 hypersonic missiles as previously believed". armyrecognition. 3 July 2021.
  9. ^ Barrie, Douglas (25 November 2022). "Chinas air show but dont tell weapons development". International Institute for Strategic Studies.
  10. ^ Newdick, Thomas (1 May 2024). "China's H-6K Bomber Seen Firing Air-Launched Ballistic Missile For First Time". The War Zone.
  11. ^ Barrie, Douglas (10 June 2022). "Catapulting China's Carrier Capabilities". International Institute for Strategic Studies.