China IRBM/SRBM (and non-ICBM/SLBM) thread
- Thread starter Blitzo
- Start date
How rational is to retire df-26 when it's less than 15 years old and the best anti-ship ballistic missiles in its range? Not to mention that it's nuclear-capable as well. From the "middle kingdom" and "the great rejuvenation" perspective, China should just keep df-26s in the "warm" reserve instead of retiring them.
Not really. It's just an indictment of how the PLA operates, that as time passes, certain platforms that are rarely ever shown early on now reach a point in time years later in which they feel comfortable enough of showing it off publicly either due to the time passed or already being succeeded by something. Doesn't mean it's about to be "retired".
You can see this for things like HQ-19/29, DF-17, DF-100, YJ-20, and a few other examples as of "lately" when they were very rarely to never shown off years prior.
I probably should have used the term superseded rather than retired. Obviously the DF-26 is nowhere near actual retirement. It's probably still mass produced for various reasons.
It's just noteworthy that strategic weapons are pretty much never shown in such high detail by the CPC and PLA. Previous officially promoted footage we had of DF-26 was only the TEL and missile being erected. Grainier footage captured from quite a distance. Now we're getting multiple close ups and basically the entire launch sequence operation from TEL movement to launch.
This is usually only allowed when the superseding system is equipped in comfortable numbers. Whatever that land based anti-ship system may be (DF-27, CJ-1000 or currently still classified) isn't broadcasted but they are clearly relegating the DF-26 to a "lesser" technology stratum, allowing its details to be considered less confidential while giving oppositions a sense of the weapon and communicating (for deterrence) that China has superior weapons of this task profile available in great enough numbers so as to present as the new mainstay.
"PLARF isn't as good as the IRGC missile forces" is actually a meme in Chinese military fan groups used to mock some Western 'silly tank' like CSIS who have long underestimated PLARF's capabilities.
These organizations downplay the presence of the PLARF in their military simulations to create survival conditions favorable to the USN, but the fact is that if a war breaks out, USN surface ships wouldn't dare get within 4,000 km of China's mainland, just like they currently don't dare get too close to Iran or casually enter the Persian Gulf.
These organizations downplay the presence of the PLARF in their military simulations to create survival conditions favorable to the USN, but the fact is that if a war breaks out, USN surface ships wouldn't dare get within 4,000 km of China's mainland, just like they currently don't dare get too close to Iran or casually enter the Persian Gulf.
