Because it is on a straight line with Dingxin Airport, which has a dedicated target zone for anti-airport training purpose and it has one NOTAM only from Jilantai to the target zone.
China IRBM/SRBM (and non-ICBM/SLBM) thread
- Thread starter Blitzo
- Start date
Maybe it's the camera, but that missile looks extremely thin at some angles (seems like it is rotating). That would indicate that this is not a Kinzhal-style ballistic missile like the YJ-21, but rather a DF-17-style hypersonic glide vehicle. Disclaimer: this may have been noted during the previous sighting in 2022.
In another satellite image in Oct 2023, it shows close to 70 DF-26s in the same site.
I would say they are assembling close to 90 - 100 DF-26s per year. Every three months, 20 more launchers shows up.
That speed is quite impressive. But are we seeing Df26 units getting added at that pace?
antiterror13
Brigadier
What is the end target unit for DF-26 ? and when it would get there?
Is it possible to differentiate between DF-26 TELs and DF-27 TELs from satellite photographs? And/or that whether the DF-26s and DF-27s produced by the same factory and at the same site?
I'm thinking that the DF-26s (and DF-27s too) should replace all DF-21s. Similarly, DF-16s and DF-17s should replace all MRBMs and SRBMs that are before them (i.e. DF-15s and any remaining DF-11s).
Further expansion efforts of the PLARF, meanwhile, should be directed towards newer and better MaRV BMs and hypersonics.
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I can see around 8 confirmed DF-26 brigade and 10 potential DF-26 brigade at this moment.
If each brigade needs 48 missiles, (currently should be 36) then PLARF needs 480 DF-26s operational.
No, I have never seen a DF-27 on the satellite yet.
DF-21 is already retired, none of them is still in active deployment. But they have some DF-11/DF-15 in the service yet.
it is prudent to keep DF11/15 in service until AR. looking at Russia's experience (not the same, i know) those will come in handy.
at the very least, they could be used to sustain a rate of fire and keep Taiwan's air defence on its toes.