Interception is complicated and not a sure thing. Just see Ukraine, there are systems that can in theory intercept incoming munitions and indeed they do intercept them but only some of the time. It's usually not 100%, some munitions will get through depending on specifics.
Munitions need delivery platforms such as aircraft, ships, land based launchers, etc. Those platforms also need their own support and logistics pipelines. If you can threaten or destroy those platforms and/or their support chain that greatly disrupts the amount of incoming munitions. Further there are a lot of targets on mainland China. A few JASSMs getting through is not going to end the war.
Unfortunately for the PLA when it comes to exact numbers sometimes that really is the case and we can't know more than vague rumors. There are examples of PLA just springing surprises on us like J-15T/J-15D in service in significant numbers before we even knew they were ready. Truth is you just have to give a significant margin of uncertainty. Satellite images help but they're not a perfect solution.
It's Bloomberg, but figured I'd check the claims anyways.
That's the point lol, we barely speculate about numbers for stuff like aircrafts or tanks because it's impossible to know.
We don't even have an official source of information on how many air defense brigades there are in the PLA again none of it is public information. Satellite images on the other hand is just a very lousy way of counting, how would you know if the unit you saw here isn't a unit you saw somewhere else 3 days ago? Plus, air defense batteries especially mobile ones are usually kept under tarps and what not to conceal their location which I think would be pretty obvious here especially after the recent Indo-Pakistani conflict but apparently not.
China has the largest underwater fleet... and if you count legacy destroyers like the 051 etc(US still has like 20 something flight I Burkes in service) and confirmed destroyers under construction/sea trail/fitting out(These destroyers at the latest should be commissioned by 2028) for PLAN then the number would be very close. As for helicopter/fighter no credible information exists, hell we don't even know what aircraft types are still in production and what not. We don't even know how many J-20s/J-16s PLAAF has only a very rough estimate and some occasional rumors on production runs.
Your number for 670 is exactly identical to IISS. Most likely he got it from there as well.
I don't know how many times we have to say here but IISS is a bad source of information on PLA. HQ-19 has been in service for so long they literally put it up for display at the Zhuhai airshow last year lmao
I am not doubting that hq-19 is in service. But they were testing it not so few years ago. So maybe they are still limited in numbers.
yes.. if you read all western reports they do specifically mentioned. this is the minimum we have taken. the Minimum numbers.
one example, HQ-19 has been in service for years but China officially disclose in last year Zhuhai air show..
same with other SAM system.. like latest HQ-29 we have seen TEL but as per the satellite imagery they have been testing this system since 2020.numbers are not accurate..
