Re: PLAN Type 052 Class Destroyer
This video
says Russian "light" AShM X-35 could only be detected "at about 6 or 7" kilometers from the target; let's make it 7000 m; missile's speed is 0.8 M; 7000/272=26 seconds to impact ...
Depends on what is looking for the incoming missile.
If it is a firgate with only its own sensors and the incoming missile is ski-skimming, this may be true.
However, there are also good AEW assets, both helicopters and aircraft that would raise the horizon significantly and carry the sensors that could pick it up much further out. Also, larger vessels with their sensors up higher also extend the horizon and can also allow it to be discovered sooner.
Once they discover the incoming missile, and what attack profie it is using, the veseels (depending on their capablitiy) will begin using electonic and decoy measures to soft kill the weapon if they can, and combine that with LR, MR, and SR anti-missiles (depending on how far out they detect the incoming threat and what defenses are available) and finally the CIWS guns. In addition, the manuevering of the ship can, as Asif says, make a significant difference too.
I have no doubt that there are conditions where the missile may not be discoverd until 6-7 kms out...but that will depend, as I said, on what sensors are looking for it. If a task force is caught napping...and sadly that does happen too...and they do not have their active and passive defensives working on defending the ships against this type of an attack...they may not discover it until even later.
