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CHINA – INDIA Military Balance,Ballistic Missiles.

7/17/2020

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Introduction
Ballistic missiles are rocket-propelled, self-guided vehicles that follow a ballistic trajectory to deliver nuclear or conventional weapons. They can be launched from aircraft, ships, and submarines in addition to land-based silos and mobile platforms. Ballistic missile systems are cost-effective weapons and symbols of national power.

This article is comparing the ballistic missile arsenals of two nuclear armed countries India & China. These two nuclear powers has sufficiently developed ballistic missile program to hit each other. China's program began way back in 50s with Russian help while India's program is totally indigenous & new.


People's Liberation Army Rocket Force

People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, formerly the Second Artillery Corps is the strategic and tactical missile forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLARF is a component part of the People's Liberation Army and controls the nation's arsenal of land-based ballistic missiles—both (thermo) nuclear and conventional.
 
On December 31, 2015, as part of a sweeping reorganisation and modernisation drive, China’s missile force, the Second Artillery Force , was formally elevated to a full ‘service’ and renamed the Rocket Force. This move recognised the increasing importance of China’s conventional and nuclear missile forces for the country’s military strategy and national security. In addition, it formalised the de facto status of China’s missile forces within the PLA given that the Second Artillery Force has played a role similar to a full service for decades.
 
PLARF missions
 
The PLARF has two key missions: strategic deterrence and war fighting. As the successor of the SAF, the PLARF is the ‘core force of China for strategic deterrence’ with the responsibility for ‘deterring other countries from using nuclear weapons against China.’ As part of its strategic deterrence mission, the PLARF conducts a diverse range of operations, including the display of combat readiness and missile capabilities through the media, military parades, military exercises, and force deployments. In addition, the PLARF is also responsible for nuclear counterattack ‘either independently or together with the nuclear forces of other [PLA] services’. Under China’s nuclear strategy, nuclear counterattack serves primarily a strategic purpose, such as to deter future nuclear aggression. However, authoritative PLA texts suggest that nuclear counterattacks may also serve secondary operational objectives.
 
In terms of conventional war fighting, the PLARF is responsible for ‘conducting medium- and long-range precision strikes’ with land-based conventional missiles against ‘key strategic and operational targets of the enemy’. The PLA’s conventional missile strategy acknowledges that due to the limited number and high cost of the PLARF’s conventional missiles, ‘the types of targets suitable for conventional missile strike is limited.’ As such, during joint operations, China’s conventional missile force will be used against high-threat and high-value enemy targets, such as reconnaissance and early warning systems , electronic countermeasure systems , anti-air and anti-missile positions , and military bases. The goal of PLARF conventional missile operations is to ‘degrade the enemy’s combat system’ and ‘suppress its operational capabilities’ in order to ‘create the necessary conditions for follow up operations by other service branches of the PLA’ .
 
In addition, the PLARF has a clear counter space role that involves the operation of antisatellite missiles. While much of the PLA’s military space mission was consolidated under the new PLA Strategic Support Force created at the same time as the PLARF, the PLA’s anti-satellite missile capabilities remain under its missile forces.
 
For the PLARF, ‘an important direction in its development’ is to ‘extend its operational capabilities to new areas, such as space’. In fact, according to current PLA missile strategy, under special circumstances, the PLARF’s missiles can be used to strike key nodes in the enemy’s space and information network, such as military satellites. It is envisaged that this would create wider effects on the enemy’s operational systems, thereby creating the conditions for the PLA to ‘seize strategic initiative’. It is also the case that the PLARF’s missile forces could target and attack an adversary’s space related land-based infrastructure, such as telemetry, tracking and control sites and other space communications systems. These PLARF counter space roles will in turn demand enhanced coordination and deconfliction with the PLA Strategic Support Force and its counter space and cyber offense role, adding another layer of command and control challenges for the newly-reorganised strategic forces of the PLA.
 
PLARF nuclear strategy
 
China’s latest defence white paper, the 2015 China’s Military Strategy, presents what has been a longstanding and largely consistent position with respect to nuclear weapons: ‘China has always pursued the policy of no first use of nuclear weapons and adhered to a self-defensive nuclear strategy.’ In addition, ‘China will unconditionally not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states or in nuclear-weapon-free zones.’ The White Paper also asserts that ‘China has always kept its nuclear capabilities at the minimum level required for maintaining its national security,’ and the reason for the modernisation of Chinese nuclear forces is only to ‘deter other countries from using or threatening to use nuclear weapons against China’.
 
The positions outlined above are consistent with both past official pronouncements and authoritative PLA publications. For example, in its chapter on nuclear strategy, the 2013 Science of Military Strategy stresses three key points.
 
First, China’s nuclear weapons are used for strategic deterrence and counter nuclear coercion purposes only, and ‘the target of [China’s] nuclear deterrence is limited to other nuclear-armed states.’
 
Second, China pursues ‘a policy of no first use of nuclear weapons,’ and it will only use nuclear weapons in self-defence when it comes under nuclear attack.
 
Third, China adopts ‘revenge’ logic of nuclear deterrence and would seek to reinforce the credibility and efficiency of nuclear deterrence through improving capabilities for nuclear counterattack.
 
While China’s declared strategy in the white paper is a restatement of earlier positions, its evolving capabilities are opening up new strategic options. This can be illustrated, for example, in the case of nuclear counterattack. In the past, Chinese nuclear doctrine emphasised that nuclear retaliation would occur only after China had absorbed an enemy’s nuclear attack. However, the mobility, readiness and informatisation of PLARF units and the PLA’s new space-based early warning system makes it increasingly feasible for China to adopt a ‘launch on warning’ posture that would have been impossible in the past.
 
PLARF bases and brigades
 
The PLARF remains organized in a series of corps leader grade ‘bases’, now numbering nine in total.
Six of them (bases 61–66) command the force’s operational missile brigades, while the other three handle warhead storage and transport (67 Base), specialist engineering (68 Base) and test and training (69 Base). The multiple new missile brigades formed during 2017 are now beginning to take shape, with some resultant relocation of units and changes to equipment and missions. In 62 Base, a combination of rebasing of existing units and the formation of two new brigades is likely to result in an additional brigade of DF-21D medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs) and a first brigade of DF-26 intermediate range ballistic missiles being formed in southern China. Both of these missile types have anti-ship capabilities and when the brigades reach operational capability will add to the PLARF’s ability to hold at risk possible targets in the South China Sea and Indian Ocean. In northern China, the new brigade in 65 Base will also most probably equip with the DF-21D, since it is currently co-located in Dalian, Liaoning province, with an existing DF-21D formation. This would result in a doubling of the PLARF’s anti-ship ballistic missile brigades, when compared to its roster before the reorganization began.
 
The two new brigades formed in 64 and 66 bases are both likely to work up as road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) units; one is most probably charged with bringing the still-developmental DF-41 (CH-SS-X-20) ICBM into service, while the other will probably equip with either the DF-31A(G) ICBM or additional DF-41s. Both of these missiles are believed to be capable of deploying multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles. The new brigades would mark the first expansion of the PLARF’s road-mobile ICBM fleet in nearly a decade. In late 2017, media reports described two test firings of a new developmental short-range ballistic missile or MRBM, reportedly with a hypersonic glide-vehicle payload. It is reported that this missile may have the PLA designation DF-17, but there is limited further information available on the missile; its connections, if any, to existing PLARF designs; and its intended mission.
 
Base number – Headquarters- Brigades/missile types
 
Base 61 Huangshan, Anhui Province

  • 611 Brigade, Chizhou, (DF-21A)
  • 612 Brigade, Jingdezhen, (DF-21A)
  • 613 Brigade, Shangrao, (DF-15B)
  • 614 Brigade, Yong'an, (DF-11A)
  • 615 Brigade, Meizhou, (DF-11A)
  • 616 Brigade, Ganzhou, (DF-15)
  • 617 Brigade, Jinhua, (DF-16)
 
Base 62 Kunming, Yunnan Province

  • 621 Brigade, Yibin, (DF-21C)
  • 622 Brigade, Yuxi, (DF-31A)
  • 623 Brigade, Liuzhou, (CJ-10A)
  • 624 Brigade, Danzhou, (DF-21D)
  • 625 Brigade, Jianshui, (DF-26)
  • 626 Brigade, Qingyuan, (DF-26)
 
Base 63 Huaihua, Hunan Province

  • 631 Brigade, Jingzhou, (DF-5B)
  • 632 Brigade, Shaoyang, (DF-31)
  • 633 Brigade, Huitong, (DF-5A)
  • 634 Brigade, Tongdao, missile type unknown.
  • 635 Brigade, Yichun, (CJ-10)
  • 636 Brigade, Shaoguan, (DF-16)
  • 637 Brigade, location and missile type unknown
 
Base 64 Lanzhou, Gansu Province
 

  • 641 Brigade, Hancheng, (DF-31)
  • 642 Brigade, Datong, (DF-31A)
  • 643 Brigade, Tianshui, (DF-31AG)
  • 644 Brigade, Hanzhong, missile type unknown
  • 645 Brigade, Yinchuan, missile type unknown
  • 646 Brigade, Korla, (either DF-21B or 21C)
 
Base 65 Shenyang, Liaoning Province

  • 651 Brigade, Dalian, (DF-21, sub-type unknown)
  • 652 Brigade, Tonghua, (DF-21C or DF-21D)
  • 653 Brigade, Laiwu, (DF-21D)
  • 654 Brigade, Dalian, (DF-26)
 
Base 66 Luoyang, Henan Province

  • 661 Brigade, Lingbao, (DF-5B)
  • 662 Brigade, Luanchuan, (DF-4)
  • 663 Brigade, Nanyang, (DF-31A)
  • 664 Brigade, Luoyang, (DF-31AG)
  • 665 Brigade, location and missile type unknown
  • 666 Brigade, Xinyang, (DF-26)
 
Base 67 Baoji, Shaanxi Province
 
Responsible for management, storage, handling of nuclear warheads and nuclear weapons training. In addition, it is believed to form part of the nuclear Command, Control and Communications network,
 

  • Equipment Inspection Institute, called Unit 96411 pre-reform
  • Unknown unit, known as Unit 96412
  • Technology Service Regiment, called Unit 96421 pre-reform
  • Transportation Regiment, called Unit 96422 pre-reform
  • Training Regiment, called Unit 96423 pre-reform
  • Maintenance Regiment, called Unit 96424 pre-reform
  • Communications Regiment, called Unit 96425 pre-reform
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General Specifications of Chinese Ballistic Missiles
Intercontinental ballistic missiles
 
DF-4 (CSS 3)
 
The DF-4 is a two-stage intermediate to intercontinental-range, transportable, liquid-fueled ballistic missile. It has an estimated range of 4,500-5,500 km and carries a 2,200 kg payload. Its payload is designed to accommodate a single nuclear warhead with a yield between 1 and 3 megatons and has an accuracy of approximately 1.5 km CEP. It has a length of 28.0 m, a body diameter of 2.25 m, and a launch weight of 82,000 kg.
 
Development of the DF-4 began in 1965, in parallel with the DF-3. The missile was originally designed to strike U.S. bases in Guam, but following clashes along the Sino-Soviet border in 1969, the DF-4 was redesigned to extend its range to be capable of striking Moscow.
Perhaps 25 DF-4 ICBMs are deployed. The missiles are based in silos, including those in northwestern China. The DF-4s have a response time of perhaps 2.5 hours. They have two stages and use storable liquid propellant and strap-down inertial guidance. The missiles have also been produced as boosters for the Long March space vehicles that launch satellites.
Two launch configurations exist for the CSS-3: a rollout-to-launch site and an elevate-to-launch silo. Many of the DF-4s are stored in tunnels under high mountains, and are launched immediately outside the mouth of the tunnel. The missiles must be moved into the open and fueled prior to firing, an operational mode dubbed chu men fang pao (shooting a firecracker outside the front door), with the fueling operation apparently requiring hours.DF-4 missiles are slowly being replaced by the DF-21 missile.

CEP -1500m
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DF-5

The basic variant DF-5 had a maximum range of just less than 10,000 km. The early DF-5 warhead does not have manoeuvre capability, so the re-entry vehicle would make an unpowered descent through the atmosphere to a pre-selected target on the orbital ground track. The estimated CEP for the warhead was over 1,000 m.
DF-5 is a liquid-fueled ICBM first deployed in the mid-1980s. This heavy-lift ICBM was designed for use with a single large-yield warhead. As part of modernization effort, the DF-5 is due to be replaced by the DF-41.
The DF-5 consists of two stages connected by an inter-stage structure, all 3.35 m in diameter. Each stage has two propellant tanks: an oxidiser tank at the front and a fuel tank at the rear, connected by an inter-tank ring section. Oxidiser is pumped to the engines via a pipe penetrating through the centre of the rear fuel tank. The two propellant tanks and the inter-tank ring section form part of the vehicle’s thrust and weight bearing load structure and are constructed from high-strength aluminium-alloy LD10.
 
The DF-5 was the first Chinese ballistic missile to have adopted a ‘Computer-Platform’ inertial guidance system. The system utilises a fluid-suspended gyro-stabilized platform (Project 157), with gas bearing gyroscopes to achieve a high degree of accuracy. The onboard computer (Project 156) was China’s first integrated circuit miniaturised computer, which became successful in the late 1960.
China may have 20 DF-5. In February 2016, it was reported that older single-warhead DF-5 missiles were being retrospectively fitted with MIRV warheads, allowing China to increase the size of its nuclear arsenal without deploying additional missiles.
 
CEP-800m

DF 5A (CSS4)

The improved DF-5A began development in the early 1990s, with the objective to field a missile with an extended range of 13,000 km. The extended range was achieved by increasing fuel capacity and reducing the weight of the re-entry vehicle heat shield. Other improvements include an improved warhead with a reaction control system (RCS), which allowed the warhead to deviate from its re-entry trajectory to reach a selected landing site and achieve greater accuracy. The launch system was also redesigned to simplify the launch procedure and reduce launch preparation time.
The first flight test of the DF-5A using a depressed trajectory took place on 17 June 1993 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre. A second test using an elevated trajectory took place on 26 July 1995 from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre. Both tests were successful, allowing the DF-5A to enter operational service.It had the maximal firing range of 12,000km-15,000km.
​
The DF-5A has been upgraded to carry MIRVs and is operational since 2010.it is the first DF-5 model to be equipped with multiple independently-targetable re-entry vehicles and is fitted with 1-3 MT yield nuclear warheads and decoys or penetration aids to increase the chances of surpassing missile defense systems. The DF-5A and the DF-5B are presently in production by the People’s Republic of China and are both considered to be operational.

DF-5B (CSS4-MOD2)
 
Revealed in Beijing on September, 2015 the DF-5B is China’s most recent DF-5 variant and is much larger than its counterparts. DF 5B can Carry up to 4-8 nuclear warheads with a circular error probability of 300-500meters.DF 5B MIRVs are housed inside a blunt payload fairing similar to that of the CZ-2C launch vehicle.
As of 2016, China is reported to have around 10 DF-5B launchers and 30 warheads.
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CEP-300-500m
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DF-5C (CSS-4 Mod 3)

The DF-5B is an intercontinental-range, silo-based, liquid propellant ballistic missile that was deployed in 2015. The physical size of the DF-5B is identical to the DF-5A but it has been upgraded to carry MIRVed warheads. DF 5B can carry 3 MIRV. The DF-5B has a 300 m CEP increase in accuracy from its previous iteration.
In early 2017, China purportedly tested the DF-5C, which is capable of carrying 10 nuclear warheads, a significant increase from the three warheads previously deployed on the DF-5B. The increased number of MIRVs may imply that China has more than the estimated 250 nuclear warheads previously believed.
 
CEP-300m
 
China’s liquid-fueled, silo-based ICBMs DF-5A and MIRVed DF-5Bs will potentially be replaced by incoming solid-fueled DF-41 ICBMs. It is possible that China intends equip all of its DF-5s with MIRVs before they are eventually retired. . If China wishes to place multiple warheads on any of its other existing missiles, it would need newer, smaller nuclear warhead designs. New warhead designs might require testing. Absent testing, which Beijing stopped in 1996 after signing the CTBT, China would probably struggle to develop warheads in the challenging design space of a few hundred kilotons of yield with a few hundred kilograms of RV mass a warhead similar to the US thermonuclear warhead, the W76. Faced with this challenge, China would have to sacrifice significant yield, reliability, or both.
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DF 5A

​DF-31 (CSS-10 Mod 1)


DF-31 is a solid-fueled ICBM which was first deployed in 2006. It is a land-based variant of the submarine-launched JL-2. It was originally called the DF-23 but was changed later on to the DF-31 because of a change in operational requirements.

The DF-31 has a range of about 7,200 km, but cannot reach the continental United States from its deployment areas in China.2 It is presumed to have taken over much of the regional targeting (of Russia, India, and Guam) previously done by the DF-4, which we estimate will be retired soon. . DF 31 deployed in 2006, the reasons for the DF-31’s apparently slow introduction are unclear and some recent US overviews don’t mention the missile at all.
DF-31 carries a single 1 MT capacity warhead. DF 31 is estimated to have a length of 13.0 m, a diameter of 2.25 m, and a launch weight of 42,000 kg. Maximum range of this missile is in between 7,000 and 11,700 km. The warhead assembly is expected to have a payload of 1,050 to 1,750 kg with a single 1 MT nuclear warhead. The DF-31 is equipped with an inertial navigation system.
​
While accuracy is expected to be around 300 m CEP, several reports have suggested that a silo-launched missile would have an accuracy of 100 m CEP and a TEL-launched missile would have an accuracy of 150 m CEP. It is estimated that China deploys 15 DF-31 ICBMs.
 
CEP -150m
​
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DF-31A (CSS-10 Mod 2)

DF 31A is an improved version of DF 31.  It was designed with MIRV capability to hold 3 to 5 warheads, each capable of a 20–150 kt yield, but is thought to be armed with only one warhead with penetration and decoy aids to complicate missile defense efforts. It can carry maneuverable reentry vehicles.

First tested in 1999, The DF-31A was deployed in 2007 and has a range of over 11,000 km. This version uses a significantly longer third-stage motor to bring the missile to a total length of 18.4m. This missile has the same diameter in its first and second motor stages as the DF-31, while the lengthened third stage is narrower at 1.5 m in diameter. The overall launch weight is believed to be 63,000 kg.
 
China has an estimated 32 DF-31A launchers deployed with the Second Artillery Corps of the PLA in four brigades. It has been reported that there are both road-mobile and silo-based versions of the DF-31A.
Road-mobile version of the DF-31A based on a semi-trailer that also acts as Transporter Erector Launcher  (TEL). It is towed by a Hanyang HY4330 8x8 tractor truck. This combination has some degree of cross-country mobility; however it is intended to operate on hard surface roads.
Once on high alert the road-mobile version can leave its base and operate in remote areas. Such mobile missiles are typically harder to intercept. These have a high probability of surviving the first strike once the country has been attacked.
 
CEP – 100m

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DF 31 AG


The DF-31AG is a solid-fuel missile. It has three stages. This missile has a range of 11 200Km. DF-31AG reportedly carries multiple independently-targetable warheads (MIRVs).    DF 31 AG has internal navigation system with indigenous Chinese BeiDou satellite navigation system. Some sources suggest that it has an accuracy of 150 meters or even better. This missile carries decoys in order to overcome missile defense systems.
 
DF-31AG is an enhanced version of the DF-31A ICBM Both DF 31A& DF 31 AG uses a transporter-erector-launcher to increase its mobility and survivability. DF 31AG was previously refereed as the DF-31B; however it appeared that its official name is the DF-31AG. It made its public debut during a major military parade marking the 90th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army. It was reportedly tested in 2015 and was first publicly revealed in 2017. A total of 16 DF-31AG launchers with missiles were publicly presented during this parade. Such appearance of numerous missiles indicates that the DF-31AG is already in service with Second Artillery Corps that are de facto strategic missile forces of Chinese army.


The previous DF-31A missile is silo based, while its road-mobile version is based on a semi-trailer. On the other hand the new DF-31AG is based on an 8-axle launcher vehicle and is more mobile. This feature widens its deployment options and thus increases survivability.
 
Transporter Erector Launcher (TEL) vehicle is based on 8-axle Taian special wheeled chassis. The TEL vehicle has some degree of cross-country mobility, though it is mainly intended to operate on hard surface roads. Vehicle has autonomy on roads of around 500 km. The missile's TEL features an extra pair of elevators near the aft of the missile unlike the TELs of the DF-31 or DF-31A, suggesting a heavier missile second and third stage than earlier variants. Once on high alert the road-mobile DF-31AG missiles can leave their bases and operate in remote areas. Its autonomy allows the vehicle to operate undetected. As a result these have a high probability of surviving the first strike once the country has been attacked.
 
CEP- 150m

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DF-41 (CSS-X-20)

Under development since 1997, the DF-41 was rumored to appear in parades in 2015 and 2017, but instead was kept under wraps, it first appeared in 2019. According to some reports DF 41 is still in development.

The US Defense Department says this missile is capable of carrying MIRVs, and rumors have spread in the news media that the DF41 can carry six to 10 warheads. The number of warheads the DF-41 carries might be significantly less, perhaps three, and the additional payload capability focused on decoys and penetration aids to overcome ballistic missile defense systems.  DF-41 will likely replace the DF-5 ICBM.

DF 41 is a three-stage solid-fuel based Missile. DF 41 has a range of 12,000Kms. While no information has been published concerning the configuration of this missile, the most straightforward path towards its development would be the addition of an enlarged third stage to the DF-31 ICBM. The larger third stage and longer range of the DF-41 is made possible by the fact that, unlike the DF-31, the size of the DF-41 is not constrained by the requirement that it be fitted into a submarine launch tube. The DF-41 strategic weapons system will have a mobile launch capability providing greatly improved survivability compared with previous Chinese intercontinental missiles. It will likely have a top speed of Mach 25.

Mobile-launched DF-41s can be carried by trucks and trains. Satellite photos taken in 2019 showed DF-41 mobile launchers in the PLARF Jilintal training area in Inner Mongolia .On 5 December 2015 China conducted a launcher test of a new rail-mobile version of the DF-41, similar to the Russian RT-23 Molodets. China may deploy the DF-41 in numbers. At least 18 of them appeared to be at the Inner Mongolia training ground in satellite photos.
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CEP – 100m

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Intermediate-range ballistic missiles
 
DF-26 

DF-26 is a solid-fueled intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) with a range of 3,000-4,000km. It is road-mobile, consists of two stages, and is designed for surface-to-surface operations. However, the missile reportedly has capabilities as an anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) as well, targeting medium and large surface ships including aircraft carriers. China officially unveiled the DF-26 in 2015 during its V-Day parade, and has been in operation since 2016.

DF 26 is likely a longer-ranged version of China’s DF-21 MRBM. The missile can be armed with a conventional or nuclear warhead. There are Speculations about a new variant of DF 26 dubbed as DF-26B; some analysts believe that the new missile is an extended range anti-ship variant of the DF-26.

DF 26 can carry several types of conventional warhead which use different destructive mechanisms to attack specific targets. For example, penetration warheads would be used to damage area type targets such as airfields and ports, piercing and exploding warheads would be used to destroy hardened targets such as bunkers and cave depots, and fuel-air explosive warheads would be used against electromagnetic targets such as command organizations and computer centers. China may have 100-160 DF 26 IRBMs.
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CEP – 100m

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Medium-range ballistic missiles
 
DF-16 (CSS-11 Mod 2)

The DF-16, first revealed publicly in September 2015, has a range of over 1000km and a warhead of over 500kg, employing the same transporter-erector-launcher (TEL) as the DF-11 with a new prime mover. It is likely a replacement for the DF-11, and may employ the same warhead as the DF-15B.

Development of the DF-16 began in the mid-2000s. It was likely a replacement to China’s older DF-15 and DF-11 SRBMs, which date back to the 1990s and 1970s, respectively. Imagery of the DF-16 was first revealed on Chinese websites in September 2012. China, however, did not officially unveil the missile until a September 2015 military parade in Beijing. It was initially identified as the DF-11C, a two stage variant of the DF-11. .
 
The DF-16 is a two-stage solid-fueled, road-mobile, short-range ballistic missile. It has a diameter of 1.2 m and can carry a 1,000 kg payload upto 1,000 km. It can be equipped with up to three MIRV high explosive, nuclear, or submunition warheads.
​
DF 16 is one of China’s most advanced SRBMs. Deployed on a five-axle Sanjian Corporation TEL; the DF-16 is road-mobile and is launched from a vertical position. Using both inertial and GPS guidance systems, the missile is highly accurate with a CEP of 5m and capable maneuvers to avoid missile defense systems during the terminal phase.
Reports from Taiwanese officials and Chinese media suggest the missile had already been operational for several years prior to its official unveiling in 2015. The DF-16 likely entered service in 2011-2012. It is currently deployed to the PLA Rocket Force in Guangdong Province, which puts Taiwan and Vietnam within its targeting range.
China may have deployed up to 50 DF-16s.
 
CEP- 5m

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DF-17

The DF-17 is solid-fueled, measures around 11 m in length, and weighs around 15,000 kg. The DF-17’s booster appears to be the same as that used for China’s DF-16 ballistic missile. Its accompanying DF-ZF HGV reportedly reaches speeds of Mach 5-10 (1.72-3.43 km/s) in its glide phase. U.S. intelligence assessments suggest that the DF-17 possesses a range between 1,800 and 2,500 km. Although Chinese commentators have emphasized the DF-17’s conventional mission, the missile may alternatively equip nuclear warheads.

DF-21 (CSS-5 Mod 6)
 
Development started in the late 1960s and was completed around 1985–86. It was developed from the submarine-launched JL-1 missile, and is China's first solid-fuel land-based missile. Approximately 10-11 missiles can be built annually. DF-21 had a range of 1,770+ km, and a payload of 600 kg consisting of a single 500 kt nuclear warhead, with an estimated circular error probable (CEP) of 300~400 m; this version did not enter operational service
 
The Kaituozhe 1 (KT-1) is a four-stage, solid-propellant space launcher based on the DF-21 design.

CEP- 300- 400m
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DF-21A 

The DF-21A has an increased range of 2,700 km and an estimated CEP of 50 m. The missile is configured for nuclear-strike missions only. It was estimated that so far around 200 missiles are produced. The DF-21 units were deployed in areas closer to China’s borders to allow adequate coverage of targets previously covered by the DF-3A, which has a longer range, but is less accurate. The DF-21A was operational by 1996.
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CEP- 50m
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DF-21C
​

First revealed in 2006, the DF-21C is a conventionally-armed MRBM system with a maximum range of 1,700 km. Unlike the early variants, the C-variant is mounted on a WS2500 10 x 10 transporter-erector-launcher (TEL) vehicles, which offers better travelling capability and survivability. The new GPS-based guidance system has reduced the missile’s CEP to 30—40 m, enabling it for near-precision-strike missions. China may have 100 DF 21 C Missiles. The missile was the first dual-capable version, able to be armed with either a nuclear or conventional warhead. In 2010, the DF-21C was being deployed in central Western China.
 
CEP- 30m (10m according to some other sources)

SC-19

The rocket booster for China’s kinetic kill vehicle (KKV) used during the January 2007 anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon test was reported to be SC-19, a modified variant of the DF-21 or KT-1.

Short-range ballistic missiles
 
DF-15 CSS-6

The DF-15 is part of the “M” family of missiles that began development in 1984 and were intended for export. The “M” family class of missiles was derived from both the Soviet S-75 (SA-2) short-range surface-to-air missile as well as the SS-1 ‘Scud’ missile. It is believed that the DF-15, given the export name M-9, was developed for Syria and the DF-11 (CSS-7), or M-11, was created for Pakistan.

The DF-15 was first displayed in 1988 at the Beijing International Defense Exhibition and flight-tested in June of that same year. It became operational in 1989 with the PLA Artillery Corps and completed development in 1990.
 
DF-15 is a short-range, road-mobile, solid propellant ballistic missile. The DF-15 can deliver a payload of 500 kg to 750 kg up to a maximum range of 600 km. Its payload carries a single separating warhead which can be equipped with a 50 to 350 kt nuclear device, chemical agents, conventional high-explosives (HE), or submunitions. Unconfirmed reports suggest that options for fuel-air explosive (FAE) warheads or electromagnetic pulse (EMP) devices may also have been developed. The DF-15 has an estimated accuracy of 300 m CEP. The missile is 9.1 m in length with a diameter of 1.0 m and a launch weight of 6,200 kg
 
The missile is carried on an 8-wheeled TA5450 transporter-erector-launcher (TEL) vehicle manufactured by Taian Special Vehicle Factory to provide full road and cross-country mobility. In time of crisis the missile system could be quickly mobilised from bases to launch locations by railway. The TEL vehicle then carries the missile to a launch site with pre-calculated coordinate data. Alternatively, the missile can be launched from an unprepared location by using GPS to obtain coordinate data.

The DF-15 uses an inertial guidance package, coupled to a faster on-board computer system to give a high accuracy. The early model has a circular error probable (CEP) of 300—600 m, but subsequent improvements on the guidance system has increased the missile’s accuracy to CEP 150—500 m. This allows the DF-15 to be used for a conventional precise-strike to destroy large fixed targets such as command & control centres, air defence missile sites, and airports.

It is generally believed that the DF-15 has been incorporated with a GPS receiver, which can provide significant improvements to the missile’s accuracy. Moreover, by reducing the need for precise alignment of the inertial measurement unit (IMU) prior to launch, the use of GPS can significantly reduce the time and effort required for prelaunch preparation of the missile. This in turn can improve prelaunch survivability, particularly for mobile missiles.
The DF-15 is a tactical missile designed to strike adversary weapons, grounded aircraft, command and control facilities, and other critical infrastructure.

CEP- 150m
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DF-15A (CSS-6 Mod-2)

The DF-15A variant is a new missile focused on improving accuracy and range which became operational in 1996. The missile is slightly larger than the original DF-15 and has a range of 900km as well as a 100m CEP. It is equipped with a high-explosive warhead and uses an inertial guidance system. The missile is reportedly nuclear-capable
Approximately 400-500 DF-15A's are in service with the PLA Second Artillery Corps today.
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CEP – 100m

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DF-15B CSS-6 Mod 2
 
The DF-15B missile is an upgraded version of the previous version of the DF-15A missile with improved accuracy, using control fins, improved terminal radar guidance, control fins on the reentry vehicle, and an active radar seeker and laser rangefinder. It has a range from 50 to 800 km depending on the payload. The DF-15B missile can carry a single 500 kg conventional warhead.
 
The improved DF-15B features active radar-homing terminal guidance and manoeuvrable re-entry vehicle (MaRV), which increase the missile’s accuracy to CEP 35—50 m. The B model can be identified by four small stabilising fins in the mid-section for corrections during the final phase of the flight. The DF-15B entered service with the PLA around 2008, and was first unveiled to the public during the National Day military parade on 1 October 2009.
 
CEP - 35 (10m IHS Janes)

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DF-15C CSS-6 Mod 3
 
First unveiled in 2013, DF-15C is a variant of the DF-15. This version is designed to strike hardened underground facilities by impacting at a steep trajectory. Distinguished by its rounded nose and extended length, the DF-15C is claimed to possess a maximum range of over 850 kilometers.
 
The DF-15C is similar to the DF-15 in appearance, but features an extended cylindrical-shaped nosecone, which was to house a deep-penetration type warhead designed specifically to attack hardened underground bunkers. Like most of the DF-15 family, the DF-15C is deployed in a vertical position by using TAS5450 or WS-2400 TEL launchers. As of 2017, the DF-15C has yet to be deemed operational.

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DF-11  CSS 7
 
The DF-11 development began in 1985 as China’s first conventionally-armed tactical ballistic missile system. The missile resembles some features of the Soviet/Russian Scud missile family, including the MAZ-543 cross-country 8×8 transporter-erector-launcher (TEL). However, unlike the liquid-fuelled Scud, the DF-11 utilises solid-fuelled propulsion, which is much easier to maintain and requires less preparation time prior to launch. In addition, the missile is believed to be also capable of delivering a variety of conventional warheads such as fuel-air explosive (FAE), sub-munitions, and bunker buster. There have been claims that the DF-11 can also carry a 2 to 20 kT-yield nuclear warhead, but this cannot be validated and appears unlikely. . 700—750 DF-11 missiles and 120—140 launcher systems were deployed, most of which were based near the Taiwan Strait
 
The missile and its 8×8 TEL vehicle were demonstrated to the PLA in 1987, and the first test launch of the missile took place in 1990. The export name of the DF-11 was M-11. DF-11 employs an inertial guidance with terminal radar homing, giving a circular error probability (CEP) of 500 to 600 m. DF-11 can reach a distance of 300km. China curiously silent on a figure for the DF-11.
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CEP – 500m

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DF-11A

The development of an improved variant designated DF-11A in 1993 under PLA funding. In addition to extending the range to over 500 km, the DF-11A is highlighted by its greater accuracy achieved by using a combined INS/GPS guidance system. The first test launch of the DF-11A took place on 6 October 1997.The missile certified for design finalisation in 1998, and was commissioned in service in 1999.
The DF-11A was designed to provide a conventional long-range firepower that fills the gap in firing-range between artillery rocket systems (50—100 km) and a theatre ballistic missile (over 600 km). The missile has been deployed by both the PLA Group Force (with a missile brigade activated in the Nanjing Military Region in the late 1990s) and the PLA Rocket Force.
 
The missile system can be readied for launch within 5 minutes from the travelling mode. The missile is erected about 15 seconds prior to launch. The TEL vehicle of the DF-11A is equipped with a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver using GPS, GLONASS or Beidou signal, which allows the missile to be launched from any location without requiring pre-survey.
 
CEP- 200 m
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M20

The M20 is a short-range ballistic missile. It was developed specially for export. This weapon is modeled after the Russian Iskander-E and is being proposed as its alternative. However the Chinese M20 uses containerized missiles and is overall a more versatile system. The launcher vehicle can carry not only ballistic missiles, but also anti-ship missiles and artillery rockets. The M20 has been exported to Qatar. Version of this ballistic missile system is used by Turkey. Also there were plans to produce the M20 missile in Belarus.
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The M20 is a road mobile system, based on a 8x8 high mobility chassis. The launcher vehicle carries 2 containerized missiles. A couple of different chassis were used, including a Wanshan WS2400 special wheeled chassis.
 
This ballistic missile is fitted with both inertial and satellite guidance systems. Each missile can be targeted independently. The missile can be retargeted in flight. This allows to engage moving targets. This ballistic missile is accurate out to 30-45 meters.
 
This ballistic missile reportedly has built-in countermeasures and is capable of evading hostile missile defense systems. Most likely that in the terminal phase of the flight it excessively maneuvers and releases decoys. In some cases this ballistic missile can be used as an alternative to precision bombing.
 
M20A is a high-precision ballistic missile. This missile is different than the baseline M20.
An anti-ship ballistic missile export variant of the M20, called A/MGG-20B (M20B), was unveiled at the 2018 Zhuhai Airshow.
Khan is a Turkish license-produced version of the M20.

CEP- 30m

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DF-12 (CSS-X-15) 
 
DF-12 is an improved version of the M20. It was reportedly adopted by the Chinese armed forces in 2013. As far as it is version for the Chinese military, it is not limited by the MTCR restrictions. It has a larger fuel tank and has a range of around 400-600 km. Even though such range is rather short comparing with other China's ballistic missiles, the DF-12 can reach all areas in Taiwan. This missile is nuclear capable. Most likely that the DF-12 has a pinpoint accuracy and is accurate to around 5-10 meters.

The DF-12 entered service with China’s People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force in August 2013. Qatar is the only other known operator of the missile, which it first displayed publicly at its National Day celebrations in December 2017.
The launch vehicle is equipped with two solid-propellant single-stage all-course guided missiles mounted at the rear of an 8x8 military truck chassis. In firing position, the missiles are erected at the rear of the chassis, and two hydraulically operated outriggers mounted on each side of the truck chassis are deployed to stabilize themselves at the battery launch site.
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CEP-30m

B-611CSS-X-11

B-611 missile and its derivatives are a series of Chinese short-range ballistic weapons (SRBM) first developed in the late 1990s by the China Precision Machinery Import and Export Corporation (CPMIEC). Typical targets intended for the B-611 include supply lines, warehouses, missiles sites, battery units, command centers, airfields, transportation hubs, and area targets in urban surroundings.The missile has a maximum range of 150-400 km.

The B-611 missile is the follow-on to the earlier Dongfeng-11 (M-11). The missile weighs approximately two tons and is powered by a solid rocket motor. The inertial guidance system with a mechanical gyro, provides an accuracy of Circular error probable (CEP) of 150 meters or better; this can be upgraded with a laser gyro or a fiber-optical gyro based on the customer’s request. When combined with other guidance systems such as that controlled by satellite, accuracy is increased ten-fold. A variety of warheads can be equipped, increasing the versatility of the missile. A typical B-611 battery would include three vehicles, the transporter / erector / launcher (TEL), housing the missile, the communication and command vehicle, and a support vehicle.
 
With the exception of a very limited number in the Chinese military for evaluation purposes, the B-611 has not entered service en masse. Instead, they would later place large orders for the B-611M, the follow-up to the B-611.
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CEP – 150m
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P-12


The P-12 SRBM is a development of the B-611; it made its public debut at the sixth Zhuhai Airshow. The P-12 is a shorter version of the B-611 and is vertically launched. The chassis of the TEL is a cross- country 6 x 6 truck, a total of two missiles are carried in an enclosed compartment in the back of the truck. The short deployment time of the B-611 is inherited by the P-12, despite the number of missiles being carried being doubled. During the launch, the first missile is erected and fired, followed quickly by the second; this can be achieved in a minute. Range of the P-12 is 150 km; its warhead is around 300 kg. A variety of warheads can be selected; the cluster warhead of the P-12 contains a total of nineteen sub-munitions.

Designed as a low-cost tactical ballistic missile, the P-12 adopts the same modular design concept inherited from its predecessor, the B-611; this means that sub-systems of the missile can be selected from a wide range of options based on the customers’ requirements. For example, the most basic form of inertial guidance system of the P-12 provide an accuracy of 80 meters or better, but this can be greatly improved to as much as ±2 meters when combined with other measures, such as satellite, radar and optical guidance. Video footage of test firings shown at the seventh Zhuhai Airshow by the developer has revealed that the combined guidance system of the P-12 enables it to hit a target such as an ordinary family house-sized warehouse at its maximum range, but the developer did not reveal the exact types of guidance systems deployed. The P-12 missile has entered Chinese service, along with the B-611M.
 
B-611M

A successor to the B-611, the B-611M has been developed for and entered Chinese service, utilizing the experience gained from both the B-611 and P-12 missiles. Its basic performance is similar to that of the B-611, but its firepower is doubled when adopting the same practice as the P-12: putting two missiles on a single TEL. As with the P-12, the two missiles can be erected and launched within a minute - a simultaneous launch is not possible. As with the P-12, the B-611M has some maneuverability at its terminal stage of flight, making it more difficult for the enemy to intercept. It have a 480 kg warhead and a range between 80-260 km.

The chassis of the TEL of the B-611M is based on an 8 x 8 cross country truck, (a BeiBen) at Baotou. Two missiles are stored in the compartment in the back, each with its own launcher / storage container, as opposed to the exposed missiles of the P-12, the rectangular launcher / storage containers of the B-611M are filled with nitrogen for added protection from the environment. As with the B-611M and the P-12, the TEL of the B-611M is capable of fighting independently in an emergency.
 
B611MR
 
The B611MR is a semi-ballistic surface-launched anti-radar missile first advertised in 2014. It uses GPS-inertial guidance and wideband passive radar. The missile is capable of flying flattened trajectory and performing pre-programmed maneuvers to reduce the chance of interception.
 
BP-12 

The existence of the BP-12 was revealed during the eighth Zhuhai Airshow which had been held at the end of 2010. The BP-12 is the first of the series that branched out of the B-611/P-12 family. In contrast to the B-611/P-12 which adopts inertial guidance, the BP-12 adopts satellite guidance instead. Through GPS, and based on the best accuracy the commercial GPS could provide, the accuracy of the BP-12 was given by the developer as a CEP of 30 meters or better. After entering Chinese service in very limited numbers for evaluation, the missile was further developed into the Type 621.
 
Type 621

The type 621 missile is the first development of the BP-12, which incorporates additional satellite guidance systems such as Glonass and Beidou, (in case GPS is not available). The external visual difference between a BP-12 and a Type 621 is that the missile for the Type 621 is unlike the B-611 where the weapon is exposed; the Type 621 is enclosed in a container that also acts as a transporter / erector.
 
Type 631

The type 631 is a further development of the Type 621; its firepower is doubled when two containers / transporters / erectors are incorporated, a design feature rooted from the B-611M. It is rumored that the Type 631 has a range greater than 400 km.


SY 400
 
The SY-400 is a short-range precision-attack ballistic missile system. It was revealed in 2008. It might use technology of the Raytheon RGM-165 or SM-4. This weapon system is intended for the export market. It is proposed as an alternative to the Russian Iskander-E. China is calling it as a guided artillery rocket system; hence it is not limited by 300 km range export restrictions set by Missile Technology Control Regime.

The SY-400 system has 8 containers with solid fuel ballistic missiles. Missiles are factory-fitted into these containers and can be stored for years and do not require additional maintenance. Missiles are launched vertically and have a range of about 400 km. The SY-400 can use different types of warheads.
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Capable of carrying an HE, fragment, submunition and EMP payload, other sources give this solid fueled SRBM an estimated range of 200km, SY-400 is not purely ballistic missiles since the end of the active segment, there is a very long flight distance, in this period of time, the missile had burn engine, the rudder has no gas for gas deflection, how the error correction produced during this time, only a control surface by air. The vane is only supporting the vertical launch system, gas in the vertical direction after the launch target deflection direction. So after the operation, will be discarded, after which control relis on the air rudder.

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Hypersonic Weapons
 
DF-ZF
 
The Chinese military has been pursuing the development of its rocket boosted HGV, the DF-ZF (initially designated WU-14 by the US) since 2010 China has tested the DF-ZF HGV at least nine times since 2014, of which all but one were considered successful. While the Chinese have not officially confirmed the conduct of any of these tests, evidently the US has been tracking them and discussed them in briefings, reports and other writings. All the test launches were performed at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre, the Chinese military’s main long-range missile testing centre, using a Medium-Range Ballistic Missile (MRBM) launcher and are believed to have achieved speeds between Mach 5 and Mach 10. All followed a linear flight path except the fifth one in August 2015, which included a maneuver that has been projected as either extreme or gentle by different analysts.

The DF-ZF could be launched from an ICBM, giving it global coverage. It is not clear whether it will be armed with a nuclear warhead, a non-nuclear warhead, or could accommodate either. U.S. defense officials have reportedly identified the range of the DF-ZF as approximately 2000Km and have stated that the missile may be capable of performing “extreme maneuvers” during flight. Although unconfirmed by intelligence agencies, some analysts believe the DF-ZF will be operational in 2020.
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The main missile that the HGV is expected to operate with is DF-17, a medium-range ballistic missile designed specifically to operate with the HGV. Other ballistic missiles are expected to be capable of operating with the HGV including the short-range DF-11 and DF-15, and the medium-range DF-21.

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Xing Kong-2

China’s “Xingkong-2” currently undergoing trials, is the country’s first waverider hypersonic vehicle with its development starting a year prior to the DF-17. Waverider is flight vehicle that flies in atmosphere and uses shockwaves generated by its own hypersonic flight with air to glide at high speed
 
Beijing successfully tested its Xing Kong-2 HGV on 3 August 2018. It is one of two confirmed Chinese HGV programs, the other being the DF-ZF, the Xingkong-2 is still in the trial phase and more tests are expected.
 
The hypersonic waverider flight vehicle was designed by state-run China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics (CAAA) in collaboration with China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. It can carry can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads. It has capability to penetrate any current generation anti-missile defence systems due to its high speed and unpredictable trajectory.


Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles

JL-1 (CSS-N-3)
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The Ju Lang-1 is China’s first submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), deployed on the Type 092 (‘Xia’ class) nuclear-powered missile submarine. The missile has also been developed into the DF-21 MRBM. As of 2018, the JL-1 and its warheads are believed to have been retired and dismantled.
 
CEP 300-400m

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JL-2 (CSS-N 14)
 
JL-2  is a Chinese second-generation intercontinental-range submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) deployed on the People's Liberation Army Navy's (PLAN) Type 094 submarines. It succeeds the JL-1 SLBM deployed on the Type 092 submarine.
 
Each type 094 SSBN is designed to carry up to 12 JL-2, a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) that is a modified version of the DF-31. Each JL-2 can equip with a single 250-1000kT warhead possibly with, penetration aids, or up to 3-4 MIRVs with 90 kT each.
 
The JL-2 has not been flight-tested to its full range but is thought to have a range of 7,200 km, although US range estimates have varied over the years. The 2017 NASIC report sets the range at 7,000-plus km. The JL-2 was first deployed in 2015.
 
JL 2 SLBM missile is the sea-based variant of the DF-31 land-mobile long-range missile. Development of these missiles was accelerated following the successful test of their common 2m-diameter solid rocket motor in late 1983.
This missile astro-inertial  navigation system with indigenous Chinese BeiDou satellite navigation system update. It is estimated that this missiles has a CEP of less than 100 m.
These submarine-based missiles have a high probability of surviving the first strike. Once on high alert these submarines can leave their bases and operate in China's coastal water, protected by the China's fleet. However the Jin class submarines are not as advanced as the Western ballistic missile submarines, and are inferior to the Russian submarines. China was always dragging behind in terms of submarine technology. These submarines are not as stealthy as the current Western and Russian submarines. These are as noisy as the Russian Delta III class submarines that were adopted back in the mid 1970s.

As of 2017, 48 JL-2 launchers are deployed on submarines.

CEP-100m

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JL 2A

Improved variant of JL 2 is JL-2A. According to some reports Type 094B submarines are to be equipped with JL-2A SLBMs with a range of 11,200 kilometres and would thus be able to reach the US without having to leave the protection of their naval base in the South China Sea.
Some other variants of JL2 like JL-2B , JL-2C also reported.
 
JL-3

The JL-3 is a Chinese third-generation intercontinental-range submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) in development. It will likely deploy on the Type 096, a predicted future class of Chinese ballistic missile submarine.
Some sources report that the next generation Type 096 class boats are being built and should begin sea trials in the early 2020s. Also a new JL-3 submarine-launched ballistic missile is being developed for these boats.
 
The missile is solid-fueled and has a reported range of over 9,000 km. Chinese and US sources reports ranges up to 7,400 mi (11,900 km).
The JL-3 is expected to carry multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles -warheads capable of targeting numerous separate locations. The first test flight occurred on 24 November 2018 in the Bohai Sea; it was likely a test of the launch tube's cold-launch ejection system. Testing continued through June 2019.

An analyst cited by The South China Morning Post stated that it would take until approximately 2025 for China to fully integrate the JL-3 into the Type 096 submarine.The development of the missile has reportedly been separated from work on the Type 096 submarine in order to accelerate its development.It is claimed that this missile has inertial guidance, possibly combined with indigenous BeiDou satellite navigation. It is also claims that during the terminal phase it uses active radar guidance. This missile should be accurate. It is likely that it has a CEP of less than 30 meters.
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CEP- 30m


Anti-ship Ballistic Missile 
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DF-21D

The DF-21D was first unveiled in 2012. It evolved from the DF-21C. Externally these missiles and their launchers are very similar. The DF-21D, dubbed a ‘carrier killer’, is an anti-ship variant of the missile with an estimated range of 1,500-1,700 kilometers. The DF-21D was allegedly first test fired in November 2015. Armed with the DF-ZF hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), a high-speed maneuvering warhead currently under development.
DF 21 D is the first dedicated anti-ship ballistic missile in the world and the DF-21D is intended to engage large surface ships, such as US Navy's aircraft carriers and their battle groups. It is claimed that this missiles reached initial operational capability in 2012.

Chinese sources report, that the DF-21D has a conventional warhead. However most likely that this ballistic missile carries a nuclear warhead, or even multiple nuclear warheads. It should be capable of attacking not only ships, but cities and military bases as well.
 
China has recently launched a series of satellites to support its ASBM efforts:
  • Yaogan-VII electro-optical satellite - 9 December 2009
  • Yaogan-VIII synthetic aperture radar satellite - 14 December 2009
  • Yaogan-IX Naval Ocean Surveillance System (NOSS) constellation (3 satellites in formation) - 5 March 2010.
  • Yaogan-XVI Naval Ocean Surveillance System (NOSS) constellation - 25 November 2012
China is reported to be working on an Over-the-horizon radar to locate the targets for the ASBM. An apparent test of the missile was made against a target in the Gobi desert in January 2013
 
Mobile launcher of the DF-21D is based on Wanshan WS2600 special wheeled chassis. Vehicle has 10x8 configurations. It is fitted with a central tyre inflation system, that improves mobility over various types of terrain, such as mud, and and snow. Vehicle has some degree of cross-country mobility. However normally it is intended to be used on hard surface roads.
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China may have deployed approximately 50 DF 21Ds.

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DF-26

 
The DF-26 is an intermediate-range ballistic missile is based on a DF-21, but has increased range. It has arange of around 3 000 to 4 000 km. It was first publicly revealed in 2015; however in 2013 this ballistic missile was already in operational service.Pentagon claims that 80 DF-26s are now deployed.
 
Unlike the DF-4 and DF-31, however, the DF- 26 is thought to be dual-capable and more accurate, and so could also be used to target aircraft carriers with conventional warheads, prompting some media sources to dub it the “Carrier Killer”, a name previously also given to the DF-21D anti-ship missile. Chinese analysts claim that the missile’s upgraded control surfaces and guidance system will provide it with the necessary capability to target ships at sea.
 
The dual-capable role of the DF-26 (and also the DF-21) raises some thorny issues about command and control and the potential form is understandings in a crisis. Preparations to launch or the actual launch of a DF-26 with a conventional warhead against a US base in the region could potentially be misinterpreted as a launch of a nuclear weapons and trigger nuclear escalation (or even preemption).
 
The DF-26 missile also reportedly has serious accuracy limitations: a 2015 report by IHS Jane’s assesses its current circular error probable (CEP) at intermediate range to be 150–450 meters, while China’s DF-15B short-range ballistic missile, for example, is reported to have a CEP of 5–10 meters as a precision guided weapon. Practically, this means that many more launches would be required to achieve the same degree of confidence in inflicting damage, pending the improvement of the sensor systems on the missile and the space-based systems providing pre- and post-strike intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and position, navigation, and timing data.

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CM 401

The CM-401 missile is a new type of high-altitude ballistic anti-ship missile. It adopts near-space trajectory and can carry out full-range hypersonic maneuvering, terminal subduction, high-speed top impact and various platform launches. Mainly used to quickly and accurately attack large and medium-sized ships and ships, formations and port targets. 

The CM-401 is not only single-shot, but also can use multiple missiles. A variety of flight ballistic combinations enhance the missile's penetration capability, making the shipboard anti-missile interception system unpredictable. The CM-401 is guided by a radar seeker that can track surface ships or use synthetic aperture (SAR) to image the ground to attack ground facilities such as ports. This maneuverability also allows the warhead to attack large, relatively slow moving targets such as aircraft carriers and other major surface warships and logistics ships. A cross-sectional view of the simulated CM-401 missile exhibited by China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) in Zhuhai shows that there is a phased array radar at the front end of the warhead so that the warhead can actively target these types of targets in its final stage.
 
CM 401 has a minimum range of around nine miles and a maximum range of just over 180 miles. CM-401 has a skip-glide” trajectory that involves the warhead abruptly pulling up at least once as it begins the terminal stage of its flight. This maneuver could extend the range of a ballistic weapon, but has only ever been used to give the warhead a much more irregular flight path and allow it to adjust its course.

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Air Launched Ballistic Missile

CH AS X 13

Air launched ballistic missile version of DF 21 ​carried by H-6K. the 3000Km Range Missile Is scheduled for deployment in 2025


INDIAN Ballistic Missiles
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Introduction

Strategic Forces Command
 
Unlike Chinese PLARF, India doesn’t have a centralized management system of its missiles but it has a command authority for its Nuclear Weapon Stockpile, Strategic force Command sometimes called Strategic Nuclear command.
 
Strategic Forces Command (SFC) is a tri-service command established in 2003. The commander-in-chief of SFC, a senior three-star military officer, manages and administers all strategic forces through separate army and air-force chains of command.  SFC forms part of India's Nuclear Command Authority (NCA). While Nuclear Command Authority (NCA) is responsible for command, control and operational decisions regarding India's nuclear weapons programme the SFC is behind the management and administration of the strategic nuclear weapons stockpile.
 
It is the responsibility of the Strategic Forces Command to operationalize the orders of the NCA under the leadership of a Commander-in-Chief who is a Senior Officer. It has the sole responsibility of initiating the process of delivering nuclear weapons and warheads, after acquiring clear approval from the NCA. The SFC manages and administers all strategic forces by exercising complete command and control over nuclear assets, and producing all contingency plans as needed to fulfill the required tasks. Since its inception, the SFC’s command, control and communication systems have been firmly established, and the command has attained a high state of operational readiness.
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Intercontinental ballistic missiles
 
Agni-5
 
India is developing a longer-range Agni-5, a three-stage, solid-fuel, rail-mobile, intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of delivering a warhead more than 5,000 kilometers (3,100-plus miles). The extra range will allow the Indian military to establish Agni-5 bases in central and southern India, further away from China.
 
Though the Agni-V is the longer range version of the Agni series, the missile has far advanced navigation and guidance system as well as a warhead and engine. The navigation system is supported by unique fault tolerance software installed in the missile. According to the Project Director of Agni V, Tessy Thomas, the missile achieved single-digit accuracy in its second test.
 
The carbon-carbon composite heat shield is meant to protect the payload and maintains the temperature inside the missile below 50 degrees Celsius. The missile is planned to become an all-composite missile that would be much lighter than the older version.  The missile is highly reliable with a longer shelf-life. There are assumptions that the missile may be fitted with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs) as well as with maneuverable re-entry vehicle (MaRV). Both technologies being developed by the DRDO.
 
The missile was designed to be easy to transport by road through the utilisation of a canister-launch missile system which is distinct from those of the earlier Agni missiles. Agni-V would also carry MIRV (multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles) payloads being concurrently developed. Agni-V incorporated advanced technologies involving ring laser gyroscope and accelerometer for navigation and guidance. It took its first stage from Agni-III, with a modified second stage and a miniaturised third stage enabling it to fly distance of 5,000 kilometres .
 
With a canister-launch system to impart higher road mobility, the missile will give the armed forces much greater operational flexibility than the earlier-generation of Agni missiles. The missile is ejected using a gas generator from the canister, so that the missile could be launched from any pre-surveyed launch location without the need for any pre-built launch site. The launcher, which is known as the Transport-cum-Tilting vehicle-5, is a 140-ton, 30-metre, 7-axle trailer pulled by a 3-axle Volvo truck. The canister design "will reduce the reaction time drastically, just a few minutes from stop-to-launch.

All-composite Agni-V with improved components will make it significantly lighter than its current avatar and with MIRV warheads; Agni-V will lead to range extension of 1500-2000 km with a 1.5-tonne warhead. Agni-V with lighter weight might be able to strike over 7000km range and with light payload over 9000km.
 
CEP – between 10m-80m

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Agni-6

Agni-6 will be a four-stage(three stage some other reports ) intercontinental ballistic missile, Agni 6 will have a range, up to 8,000 km to 12,000 km.  Agni 6 will be sleeker than the Agni-5 and capable of carrying at least 10 multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle as well as Maneuverable reentry vehicle (MaRV). And these maneuverable warheads will give Agni 6 an extended range exact figure of which is currently classified. Agni-6 will carry a massive three-tonne warhead.

The road mobile Agni-6 would also have stringent limits on its length. It will be carried on a standard size trailer that can move from one part of the country to another, turn on roads, cross bridges and climb heights.
According to some reports Technologies for Agni 6 is already developed but Government is reluctant to go ahead with testing.

To know more visit: - http://fullafterburner.weebly.com/next-gen-weapons/agni-6-the-indian-icbm

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Agni 4 &5 Range

Medium-range ballistic missiles

Agni-1

Agni-1 is a short-range, road/rail-mobile, solid propellant ballistic missile. Falling between the short-range and medium-range categories, it fills the gap between India’s Prithvi systems and the Agni-2.
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The missile is a single stage ballistic missile. The upper stage of the missile is a liquid propulsion system while the lower stage is solid propulsion and the missile was derived from Prithvi with a strap down inertial navigation system that adopts explicit guidance. Carbon composite structures are used in the missile for protection of the payload.
The Agni-1 is 14.8 m long, 1.3 m in diameter, with a launch weight of 12,000 kg. It has a range of 700 km with an accuracy of 25 m CEP. At its maximum payload of 2,000 kg, the missile can carry a 20 or 45 kT nuclear warhead, or conventional explosives.2 By reducing the payload by half, the Agni-1 could most likely extend its range to 1,200 km.
Some suspect that the reentry vehicle of Agni 1 also includes liquid propellant side-thrust motors to add a degree of maneuverability to avoid defenses. The Agni-1 is designed to be launched from Transporter-Erector-Launcher (TEL) vehicles, either based on road or rail-mobile platforms.In addition, the missile has a relatively high accuracy, due to its combination of an inertial guidance system with a terminal phase radar correlation targeting system on its warhead.
Agni 1 has a shorter range but a heavier payload than the Agni-2, which was derived more directly from the Agni-demonstrator.

CEP- 25m

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Agni 1P

India is developing a brand new short-range, ballistic missile called the Agni-1P, equipped with cutting-edge technologies. This will replace the old Prithvi and Agni-1 missiles. The Agni-1P will have a range of 300-700 kilometres, which matches the ranges of the Prithvi and Agni-1. Agni-1P program sanctioned in 2016
The Agni-1P will be a two-stage, solid propellant missile. Both stages will have composite rocket motors, guidance systems with electro-mechanical actuators, and inertial navigation systems based on advanced ring-laser gyroscopes. These technologies will enable a lighter missile with improved Circular Error Probability (CEP), than the older ones.
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Agni-1P will be shorter than current Prithiv-1 and also a lot thinner in diameter, which makes it highly compact and portable in size. Agni-1P will be highly road-mobile and also will come with a canister-based transporter erector launcher mounted on chassis of 8×8 heavy off-road military truck. 
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Intermediate-range ballistic missiles
 
Agni-2

The Agni 2 is a medium to intermediate range missile with a range of at least 2,000km. The two-stage, solid-fuel, rail-mobile Agni-2, an improvement on the Agni-1, can deliver a nuclear or conventional warhead. Agni II is a solid propelled mobile missile with a payload capacity of 1000 kgs equipped with advanced high accuracy navigation system guided by state-of-art command and control system. With a reduced payload, the missile is reported to reach targets up to a range of 3500kms. The missile is a two-stage missile. The Agni-II also is equipped with Post Boost Vehicle (PBV) that could be integrated into the missile’s re-entry vehicle. The booster stage is more powerful than that of Agni-I as it uses the same booster of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The newer Agni-II missiles use side thrust motors instead of fins as used in the older Agni-II versions and a combination of inertial navigation and GPS in its guidance system.

The weapons system is also road mobile in addition to its rail mobility. The extensive railways in India allow transport of these missiles with ease. Production capacity is reported to be at least 10 missiles a year. There was a modified version of the Agni II known as the Agni II+ later it named as Agni-4.

What is unique about the Agni-II is the trajectory shaping and guidance that is possible through software. Agni-II has appropriate on-board thrusters fitted on the second stage of the missile. This is because solid fuel is allowed to burn completely, which means that the velocity increment achieved before re-entry could be more or less from the mission perspective. Further, there is considerable dispersion or variation in the burn and thrust time of solid fuels. Any compensation that is given to the missile during its ballistic phase (which happens once the second stage is fully burnt out) should be based on the on-board sensor data and should be amenable to being adjusted reactively. These on-board thrusters are driven by liquid-fuel and provide small increments in the appropriate directions to shape the trajectory depending upon the target of the mission. It is these thrusters that give the manoeuvrability during the missile's re-entry phase. This has apparently been optimized through on-board software which, based on the initial trajectory fed in, does an appropriate velocity trimming. In effect this is a hot gas active velocity correction system.
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CEP- 30-40m

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Agni-3
 
The Agni-3 – a two-stage, solid-fuel, rail-mobile, intermediate range ballistic missile – is capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to 3,200-plus kilometers. The Indian Ministry of Defence declared in 2014 that the Agni-3 is “in the arsenal of the armed forces,” and the Strategic Forces Command conducted its fourth user trial on April 27, 2017 from Abdul Kalam Island on India’s east coast. With this missile, India can even strike Shanghai, but this would require launching the Agni-3 from the very northeastern corner of India.
 
Agni-III RV supports a wide range of weapons, with total payload mass ranging from 600 kg to 3,490 kg including decoys and other ABM countermeasures. Some suggest a fusion warhead of about 200-300 kT will be the primary warhead and others claim the missile could carry MIRVs, conventional high explosives, or submunitions.
 
The missile is reported to be shorter and wider and capable of carrying a heavier warhead than Agni-I and Agni-II missiles. The missile is both road and rail mobile. The missile achieves greater accuracy due to the re-entry vehicle using imaging infra-red or active seekers. In fact, the missile is considered to be one of the most accurate missile systems in the world.
 
Most estimates of the Agni-3’s range are between 3,000 and 3,200 km, though some sources list it as high as 5,000 km with the potential to reach 6,000 with better motors and a light payload. One explanation for the higher range estimates could be the development of a chromium coating, which Indian scientists claimed in 2008, would boost the range to 4,900 km.
 
It is still early in the Agni-3 deployment; there are probably fewer than 10 launchers and the full operational status is uncertain. The additional range potentially allows India to deploy the Agni-3 units further back from the Pakistani and Chinese borders. Several years ago, an army spokesperson remarked,
 
CEP < 40m

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Agni 2 & 3 Range

Agni-4

Agni-4 is the fourth in the Agni series of missiles which was earlier known as Agni II prime. It has been developed by DRDO and displayed a number of new technologies and significant improvement in missile technology.
The missile is light-weight and has two stages of solid propulsion and a payload with re-entry heat shield. With 3,500 to 4,000 km range, it is capable of striking targets in nearly all of mainland China, if launched from northeastern part of India.

The Composite Rocket Motor which has been used in Agni 4 has given excellent performance. The missile system is equipped with modern and compact avionics with redundancy to provide a high level of reliability.
 
The indigenous-built jam proof ring ring laser gyroscope is used in the high accuracy INS (RINS) and Micro Inertial Navigation System (MINGS), which complement each other as a redundancy. The high performance onboard computer with distributed Avionics architecture, high speed reliable communication bus and a full Digital Control System have controlled and guided the missile to the target. The missile can reach the target with a high level of accuracy. The radar cross-section and other detectable signatures of Agni-IV have been significantly reduced to make them much more immune to counter-measures.
 
Following the final development test in 2014, the ministry declared that Agni-4 “serial production will begin shortly.” Since then, three user launches have been conducted by Strategic Forces Command, the most recent on January 2, 2017.

The Agni-4 is road mobile and carried by a truck TEL, unlike the Agni-3, which is primarily rail-mobile. Reports suggest that the Agni-4 can be fitted with a 20 or 45 kT nuclear warhead, or a 200-300 kT fusion warhead.
 
 CEP< 100m

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Short-range ballistic missiles
 
Prithvi-1 (Possibly Retired)

Prithvi 1 is a surface-to-surface ballistic missile having a maximum warhead mounting capability of 1,000 kg, with a range of 150 km (93 mi). It has an accuracy of 10–50 m and can be launched from transporter erector launchers.
India began developing the missile in 1983. In its current configuration, the missile is 8.56 m long, 1.1 m in diameter, and weighs 4000 kg. It uses a single-stage, liquid propellant engine, which is essentially two liquid propellant motors side-by-side that provide aerodynamic control as well as thrust vectoring. This engine control allows the missile to stop climbing when it reaches an altitude of 30 km, travel horizontally at this altitude, and dive on its target at an 80° angle. The missile has a minimum range of 40 km and a maximum of 150 km. Prithvi 1 missile was inducted into the Indian Army in 1994. 

Prithvi was probably fitted with a range of small nuclear warheads with 1, 5, or 12 to 20 kT yields, and a weight of around 250 to 300 kg. HE penetration, HE submunitions, fuel-air explosive, and chemical warheads have likely also been fitted to the missile. Prithvi missile will be replaced with the Prahaar missile.
 
CEP – 10- 50m

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Prithvi-2

The Prithvi-2 is a short-range, road-mobile, liquid-propellant ballistic missile. Similar to the Prithvi-1 in many ways, it trades a smaller warhead for a longer range.  It was first test-fired on 27 January 1996 and the development stages were completed in 2004. This variant has been inducted into the army as well.
Prthivi has a maximum range of 250 km with an accuracy of 50 m CEP. In 2011, the Prithvi-II was tested to 350 km, suggesting some upgrades since early testing. It uses an improved liquid propellant over its predecessor. Its payload consists of a single warhead weighing 500 or 1000 kg.  The missile’s primary warheads are nuclear, high-explosive, or sub munitions.

Given the relatively small size of the Prithvi missile (nine meters long and one meter in diameter), the launcher is difficult to spot in satellite images. Prithvi features measures to deceive anti-ballistic missiles.

Prithvi missiles launch from an 8*8 TATA Transporter-Erector-Launcher (TEL) vehicles. The missile’s high accuracy enables it to hit enemy military targets effectively, making it a battlefield weapon. The state-of-the-art missile uses advanced inertial guidance system with maneuvering trajectory to hit its target.
 
CEP- less than 50m

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Prahaar/ Pragati

Prahaar is a short-range, solid propellant, road-mobile ballistic missile designed for tactical strikes against close range targets. It can travel up to 150 km and is propelled by a single-stage solid propellant engine. The Prahaar is carried by the TATRA Transporter-Erector-Launcher vehicle and can hold six missiles per truck. Each missile is believed to be vertically launched, and they can be launched in salvo mode for multiple azimuth attacks. Some reports also suggest that reloads can happen quickly, allowing what could be called a “ripple firing mode.” It is quick-reaction, all-weather, all-terrain, highly accurate battlefield support tactical missile with advance manoeuvring capability.

It can carry a 200 kg payload with planned nuclear, HE, and submunition options. In 2013, reports surfaced that suggested that the Prahaar would replace the short range Prithvi-1 when it was declared operational. India’s acceptance to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) has also paved the way to export a version of the missile, the Pragati, which was displayed at a defense exhibition in South Korea in 2014.
Indian army may choose Pranash(Under development) over Prahar.  The export variant of the system is the Pragati surface to surface missile. Pragati has a higher range of 170 km and shares 95 percent of Prahaar's hardware components
For More Info about Prahaar : http://fullafterburner.weebly.com/terrain-battle-machines/prahaar-short-range-tactical-ballistic-missile

CEP-10m

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Pranash 

Due to limited 150 km (93 mi) range of Prahaar, the Indian Army wanted a new tactical ballistic missile with range of 200 km. The configuration of the new missile called Pranash has been frozen by DRDO with the developmental trials begins from 2021. It will be a non-nuclear powered by single-stage solid propellant which will be offered for user trials within two years time.
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The missile is an advanced version of the 150-km strike range Prahar missile which was being developed for tactical missions. The surface-to-surface ballistic missile will be of use for the Air Force and Army. Pranash carries different designs and specifications then Prahaar missile other than just additional 50km range.

Pranash is shorter and much skinnier than the Prahaar missile while the weight of both missiles stands at 1.3 tonnes and still carriers a 200kg payload and has an accuracy of CEP <20 meters. Pranash is mounted on a 6×6 High Mobility Vehicle (HMV) allows better mobility at mountain terrain.

Prahaar remained on back burners even after successful tests since Army was not interested in mobile tactical short-range ballistic missile back then but a few years back when they showed interest in the Prahaar CRBM it didn’t meet many requirements due to which Pranash was conceived to meet Army requirement since many of the technologies already developed for Prahaar will be used on the Pranash CRBM.

Pranash CRBM along with its longer sibling Pralay SRBM will play a critical role in theater level conflicts against hostile fire weapons, air, and anti-missile defenses, command posts and communications nodes and troops in concentration areas, both Pranash and Pralay, when inducted in Indian Army, will clear paths to retire aging Prithvi 1 tactical surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) developed by DRDO in the ’80s.

India is looking for exporting the missile to friendly nations as it will come outside the purview of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) which restricts range above 300 km to be exported.

​CEP<20m
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Pralay

Pralay is a solid-fuel surface-to-surface guided short-range ballistic missile for battlefield use developed by DRDO . The missile is based on Prithvi Defence Vehicle from Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme.
With China’s People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) fielding a sizeable inventory of conventionally armed BMs in Tibet, the Indian Army (IA) wants to deploy symmetric counters to the same.  At the moment, the only means for the IA to strike targets at distances of close to 500 km is the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile (CM), which though deadly accurate, can carry a payload of only about 200 kg or so, besides being somewhat expensive. As such, the IA in recent times has felt the need for a SRBM with a range of around 500 km that can also carry a sizeable payload.

The missile, which has remained wrapped in secrecy till now, is reportedly capable of carrying a 1000 kg payload and has a range of 350 km. Its range can be increased to 500 km if the payload is halved. Work on it started in 2015 after the Army sought a 500-km range SRBM to go head-to-head against China's rocket force. . Pralay Missile system will get a Canister Mobile Launcher based on aboard an 8×8 truck chassis. It will be designed to fly faster, will have unconventional flight profile and will have the ability to change directions to make it more unpredictable and raise difficulty level for Air Defence Systems and mobility of the launch platform also makes a launch difficult to prevent.
Fuelled by composite propellant, it uses inertial navigation system for mid-course guidance. With Pralay, Indian Army wants to be less dependent on Air Force for precision bombing in theater level conflicts to suppress enemy’s capability to wage war by attacking their command posts, communications nodes, large troops in concentrated areas and other active military units in areas.

Pralay Missile project is actually the development of the Loitering Missile with the supersonic PGM and act as the mother cruise missile that can deliver the weapons and have more loitering time than the Brahmos or Nirbhay.

CEP <20m

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Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles

K-15

The K-15 Sagarika is a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) designed to be launched even under ice caps, the K-15 SLBM, code-named as B05, is 10.4m-long and can carry a nuclear warhead targeted 750km away.
Development of the Sagarika is thought to have begun in the 1990s. The Sagarika is powered by a two-stage solid propellant motor. It has a reported length of 10.8 m, a body diameter of 0.8 m, and a launch weight of 5,500 to 6,300 kg. The payload can be HE or nuclear with a weight of 500 to 800 kg. The missile likely depends on inertial navigation for guidance and may possess a radar-based terminal homing system.  Sagarika is most likely an R&D platform for the development of a longer-range SLBM. Between 2004 and 2008, it reportedly underwent 10 different test firings with the first fully integrated test in January 2010.
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CEP – 20m

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K4

K-4 is an intermediate-range submarine-launched ballistic missile under development by DRDO. It is a 10 m long missile weighing 20 tonnes, capable of carrying a 2 tonne payload up to a range of 3,500 km.

The missile is being developed for integration with India's Arihant class nuclear submarines. K-4 has range comparable to Agni-III with major length reduction from 17 metres (56 ft) to 12 metres (39 ft). INS Arihant, first of the Arihant Class Submarines, will be able to carry 4 K-4 missiles. The missile has completed trials and is ready for induction.
 
CEP<100m

K-5 (Under Development)

K-5 missile is reportedly being developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for the Indian strategic forces’ underwater platforms. K5 will be a three stage solid propellant based system, it is planned to have a range of around 5,000 km.
 
It will arm the future variants of Arihant class submarines of the Indian Navy. The missile will be able to carry a payload weighing two tonnes. It is being developed to match the range of the Agni 5 missile. K-5 will have countermeasures to avoid defense systems. The development of the missile started in 2015.
 
K-6 (Under Development)

K6 is an under development next generation Submarine Launched ballistic Missile. This will have a range between 6000-8000Km with MIRVs. The developmental work for these missiles started in February 2017 at the Advanced Naval Systems Laboratory of DRDO, with a completion target of less than ten years. K6 will have a three-tonne payload. It has a planned length of over 12 meters and a diameter of over 2 meters.K6 arm the under development S5 class Nuclear submarines and probably S4* Submarines. 

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Strike Range of K4, K5 & K6 From Vishakapattanam bay of Bengal

Hypersonic Missile

Shaurya

Technical details on the Shaurya are difficult to ascertain, as the program is held as a tight secret. Shourya  and Sagarika is a new common missile that can be launched from multiple platforms viz. ground, submarine and mobile launcher. Naval version is called Sagarika while the land based version is called Shourya. It has a range of 700 to 1,900 km.
 
Shourya is a compact, slender, two-stage, solid fuel missile designed as a wooden round. The missile development was initiated as project K15. The missile supports a range of unitary warhead configurations, weighing 180 to 1,000 kg. High missile accuracy and ability to fly in a highly depressed trajectory well within atmosphere indicates it is a weapon of choice to interdict Command & Control (C&C) and preemptive tactics.
 
The sixth test flight on November 12th, 2008 was a depressed trajectory flight (at Mach 6 and 50km altitude) with continuous rolling to dissipate heat over a larger surface demonstrated mastery of difficult aspects of rocketry involving sustained hypersonic flight. The missile is launched by a hot gas generator developing 15-200 bar pressure using high burn rate HTBP based composite propellant. The thick dark gas cloud greatly reduces the thermal signature of the missile.
 
Shourya class of missile is truly a multi-services missile that has desirable attributes of small size, mobility, stealth, rich set of warhead options, robustness and cost that could make it the most mass produced Indian missile.
 
CEP-20m

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Anti-ship Ballistic Missiles 
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Prithvi-3/ Dhanush

The Prithvi-3/ Dhanush is a short-range, road-mobile, ballistic missile that started development in 2000. The missile can carry a 1,000 kg warhead to a distance of 350 km (220 mi) and a 500 kg warhead to a distance of 600 km (370 mi) and a 250 kg warhead up to a distance of 750 km (470 mi). Prithvi III was first tested in 2000 from INS Subhadra, a Sukanya-class patrol vessel. The missile was launched from the updated reinforced helicopter deck of the vessel.

Prithvi 3 can be used as surface to surface, ship to ship roles and Ship to surface roles . Its design features customizations to Prithvi platform to make it suitable for launch from ship. This Missile was designed to launch from the back of two specially configured Sukanya-class patrol vessels (Subhadra and Suvarna); each ship can carry two missiles.
 
Prithvi-3/ Dhanush is a system consisting of a stabilization platform and the missile. It is a customized version of the Prithvi and is certified for sea worthiness. Dhanush has to be launched from a hydraulically stabilized launch pad. Its low range acts against it and thus it is seen as a weapon either to be used to destroy an aircraft carrier or an enemy port.

The missile was test-fired successfully on 5 October 2012, on 23 November 2013, 9 April 2015, and 24 November 2015 from Indian Navy ship INS Subhadra (P51) in the Bay of Bengal off the Orissa coast. The December 2015, an enhanced 350 km version of the Dhanush was tested from INS Rajput and successfully hit a land-based target. There were two user test launches in 2016, and another in February 2018. 

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An Unknown Missile

In an Interview with Dr Avinash Chander, the then DRDO Chief and scientific advicer to defence minister in 2014 hinted about the development of an Anti Ship Ballistic Missile which will have a range of more than 1500Km.

He said” a long range anti-ship missile which can prevent aircraft carriers from coming within 1500-2000 km of our shores are also being pursued. The long range anti-ship missile is on the drawing board, and we are confident that in about six years we would be able to get it ready. The long range anti-ship missile is going to be a ballistic missile with a seeker which can hit ships at long range.”
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According to the interview the missile should be ready by this time, but don’t know what’s the status of this missile. 



Air Launched Missiles

DRDO initiated a hypersonic missile project called Air launched article. It is designated to fit with Sukhoi Su-30MKI. It is believed to be a variant o K missile Family, till now there is no news or updates about the missile.

RudraM Family of Missiles

RudraM Family of missiles are believed to be under development air launched Ballistic Missiles (Not Sure, may be  wrong). Not much data about these missiles are available.
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RudraM 2 and RudraM 2A may be supersonic air to ground ballistic missiles. Range may be more than 300 km.
RudraM 3 probably air launched Ballistic missile which may be go hypersonic speeds upto a range of 500km.

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A slide showing Rudram Family of missiles
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Possible schematic diagram of Rudram 3

Ballistic Missile Defense

Both India & China developed BMD and is Researching for a better BMD.

China is working to develop ballistic missile defences consisting of kinetic-energy exo-atmospheric and endo-atmospheric interceptors. In 2016, official media confirmed China’s intent to move ahead with land- and sea-based midcourse missile defence capabilities.  

China has benefited from the Soviet and Russian technology and in recent years, the two countries have come closer to each other in anti-missile cooperation. In December 2017, for example, they had a joint computer simulated ABM exercises.
 
China has at its disposal the HQ-19/SC 19 midcourse interceptor that can target ballistic missiles possessing ranges of up to 3,000km. The US Department of Defense was of the opinion that “an HQ-19 unit may have begun preliminary operations in western China. HQ-19/ SC-19 are all right for medium-range missiles and LEO satellites, but for interception at higher altitudes, the Chinese are developing the Dong Neng missiles aimed at mid-course interception. Multiple tests of the DN system have taken place since 2010. China performed a successful BMD test using a DN-3/KO09 hit-to-kill midcourse interceptor on 5 February 2018, where it hit a DF-21 target. It is analogous to the American SM-3 missile, although it has not yet hit an intermediate-range or intercontinental ballistic missile. As an exo-atmospheric midcourse kinetic interceptor, the DN-3 could also act as an ASAT platform.
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Lower in capability and better suited for point defence against tactical missiles is the HQ-9 surface-to-air missile (SAM). Newly delivered S-400 SAMs from Russia will also permit the PLA to engage missiles, while ground-based radars such as the JY-27A and JL-1A can track incoming ballistic missiles.


​Chinese radars 

Chinese work on of Large Phased Array Radars (LPAR) began in the 1970s. In recent years’ evidence has emerged of very substantial Chinese advances in the LPAR field which are crucial for any kind of BMD and ASAT capability.
 
The US says that China’s JL-1A and JY-27A radars are aimed at tackling the ballistic missile threats; with the former being able to precision track multiple ballistic missiles. It is anti-missile radar with 2D digital active phased array system, while the latter is land-based long-range air surveillance and guidance meter-wave 3D radar.
In October 2017, a report in a Chinese website revealed large P-band radar with a detection range of 5,000 km. The aim of the radar, which is based on the periphery of the country, reportedly Shandong peninsula, is to intercept and track strategic missiles launched from the direction of Japan, South Korea and Guam. The report also spoke of the setting up of X band radar in Helongjiang. The main task of this radar is to guide intercepts of targets detected by the P-band long-range radar.
While the JL-1A is likely to be the X-band radar, experts say that it is not clear what is the designation of the P-band radar that has been set up in Shandong province of China.
The Chinese conduct their tests from their test site in Korla, Xinjiang. Since the hit-to-kill vehicles can be used for BMD and ASAT, the site probably services both functions. Missiles are launched from the nearby Shuangchengzi Space and Missile Centre (SSMC).
 
The SC 19 is more akin to the US THAAD, useful to take out missiles in their terminal phase. He notes that these tests could be related to Agni missiles that India has deployed the Agni II MRBM and the Agni III IRBM and is still testing the Agni IV and V. It is significant that China’s 5 February 2018 BMD test took place several weeks after India’s first pre-induction trial of its Agni V which is claimed to be an ICBM.
 
Of even greater significance, perhaps, was the revelation, just three days after the Indian test, that the Chinese had established a large anti-missile radar on the Qinghai plateau north-east of the Tibet Autonomous Region. The news was put out through the CCTV programme. It said that the anti-missile radar was an X band facility with the ability to track multiple targets. The Hong Kong news source that picked it up reported that it could pick up any target in South Asia at a range of 4,000 kms and pass it on to the SC-19 system for destruction.


India also developed a range of Ballistic Missile Defense Technologies to protect it from Ballistic Missiles.
To Know More about Indian BMD visit: http://fullafterburner.weebly.com/aerospace/indias-ballistic-missile-defence-shield-a-strategic-analysis

Indian Radars

Indian Radars Include, Sword Fish Radar with a range of 600Km , Long Range Tracking Radar with a Range of 1500Km for 0.1m RCS , Very long Range Tracking Radar with a Range of more than 2000Km . Huge ground based Radars probably for ballistic missile defense and Over The Horizon radars are under development, the status of these Radars are Un known.

While BMD worldwide is projected as being stabilising in nature, it essentially has destabilising capability. The presence of BMD can instill a false sense of security in the holder, who may then opt for a nuclear first strike thinking that any retaliatory attack by the adversary could be intercepted through the BMD. 

Conclusion

Chinese Missiles Pointing towards India
 
An estimated 100+ Chinese missiles could strike all or parts of India. These include about a dozen DF-31A and twelve DF-31 missiles capable of reaching all Indian mainland targets. Another dozen DF-21s can hit New Delhi.
 
The remaining missiles can target sections of India’s northeast and east coast. Moreover, as China deploys more road-mobile missiles over time, it will become easier to move further missiles from China’s interior to new survivable positions within range of India.
 
Chuxiong Brigade,  ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150km range)
 
Kunming Brigade, ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range)
 
Tianshui Brigade,  ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range)
 
Beidao/Tawanli Brigade, ~ 12 x DF-31A (11,000 km range)
 
Xining Brigade, ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range) / DF-31 (7,000 km range) (Unable to determine exact missile locations, so location of 56th Base HQ utilized)
 
Datong Brigade,  ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range)
 
Liuqingkou Brigade,  ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range)
 
Delingha Brigade, ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range) / DF-31 (7,000 km range), DF-21C (2,150km range) conventional missiles.
 
Da Qaidam Brigade, DF-21C (2,150km range) conventional missiles.Unknown nuclear missile deployments. (Previously DF-4 Brigade, but only DF-4 Brigade still in operation is close to Lingbao in Henan Province).
 
Mahai Brigade,  Unknown
 
Korla Brigade, ~ 12 x DF-21 (2,150 km range) missiles. DF-21C (2,150km range) conventional missiles
 
Indian Missile against China
 
The bulk of India’s missiles forces are located closer to Pakistan than China. We estimate that around ten Agni-III launchers can reach the entire Chinese mainland. Another eight Agni-II launchers could reach central Chinese targets.
 
444 Missile Group Brigade (Possible General Brigade Sites) ~ 8 Prithvi-II (250 km range) missile launchers total (Jodhpur, Rajasthan)
 
334 Missile Group, 3341 Brigade ~ 8 Agni-III (3,200 km range) missile launchers,~ 8 Agni-II (2,000 km range) missile launchers(Near Misa Army Camp, Nagaon, Assam)
 
333 Missile Group, 3332 Brigade ~ 8 Prithvi-II (250 km range) missile launchers (Kamptee, Maharashtra)
 
332 Missile Group Brigade ~ 8 Agni-II (2,000 km range) missile launchers (Kamptee, Maharashtra)
 
334 Missile Group, 3341 Brigade ~ 10 Agni-I (1,000km range) missile launchers ( Pune)
 
333 Missile Group, 3331 and 3332 Brigades. 334 Missile Group Brigade. ~ 16 Prithvi-II (250 km range) missile launchers ~ 10 Agni-I (1,000km range) missile launchers ( Vigynana Kancha, Hyderabad)


Both India & China has enough missiles to hit each other in any part of the country. Indian missiles are much more accurate than Chinese Missiles but it won’t be a decisive advantage. Better accuracy certainly helps to attack Military installations with more confidence and fewer missiles are needed to destroy the target and accomplish the objective. A large part of Chinese Missiles are Liquid fuel based and silo based .Indian Missiles, on the other hand, use solid-fuel propellant which permits launching at moments' notice and allows missiles to be held at a permanent state of readiness for indefinite periods.
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China's older strategic missiles are vulnerable due to dependence on liquid-fuels, spawning other weaknesses like pre-launch exposure which can invite pre-emption.

There are two related aspects of China's BMs that heighten their vulnerability: dependence on liquid-fuel propellant for its missiles and their basing modes. Launching an ICBM is an extremely time-consuming effort. The time expended to get a missile fuelled, aligned and ranges set apparently took between a maximum of more than four hours, and a minimum of two and a half, not including transport time from storage to launch site. The majority of pre-launch time however, was consumed by the fuelling process: DF-4 ICBMs have to be assembled then erected first; both the DF-4 and DF-5 are then fuelled very slowly because of the hypergolic (spontaneously igniting) nature of the chemicals in the oxidiser and fuel. The net effect of this launching process means that the missile is, first and foremost, exposed and secondly, the pre-launch preparation process was far too time-consuming, virtually guaranteeing detection by foreign satellites. China's ICBMs, due to pre-launch exposure, therefore, have become easy targets and may invite a pre-emptive attack from an adversary.

Furthermore, China's ICBM vulnerability is heightened by their basing modes and deployment techniques. While the DF-4 ICBM is semi-mobile (stored in caves but exposed when launched) and apparently widely dispersed in the northeast and northwestern parts of China, sufficiently camouflaged and concealed to avoid detection, the DF-5 ICBM is permanently based in underground silos, located in central and western China. Their vulnerability has been partially overcome by the construction of fake silos throughout China's central territory designed to distract and deceive foreign satellites, and through the hardening of real silos to withstand the force of at least a lower-yield nuclear blast.  From one perspective, if viewed in isolation, China's strategic missiles seem quite secure. However, when the element of a numerically superior adversary is factored into the equation, the missiles' physical survivability is questionable.

The second claim of inaccuracy is relatively self-explanatory. When determining accuracy for BMs the measure used is called Circular Error Probability (CEP). "The CEP of a missile is the radius of a circle within which fifty percent of all warheads fired at the same target will fall. The lower the CEP the more accurate the missile, and vice-versa. The CEP of China's DF-3 and DF-4 ICBMs are greater. Thus according to the CEP, if ten of China's ICBMs were fired at the same point, at least half of them would fall within a cluster where they are not more than 2000m apart. However, for one comparative example, the CEP of the American MX Peacemaker, the backbone of United States ICBM forces, is less than 100m. If ten of these missiles were fired at the same point half of them would fall within a cluster where they are no more than 200m apart.
 
The vulnerabilities of older Chinese missiles were addressed in the latest Chinese missiles. New generation Chinese missiles using solid fuel as propellants. Solid-fuel rockets can remain in storage for a long time without much propellant degradation, and the fact that they almost always launch reliably. Solid fuel missiles can reduce the pre-launch time considerably thus reducing the launch time and exposure to foreign satellites. Solid fuel missiles are less likely to explode.

Most of the new generation Chinese missiles are compatible for Road/Rail Mobile Transporter erector launcher, this enables them to move frequently and can find suitable location to launch the missile then hide. TEL based missiles are highly survivable.

May be the Indian missiles are slightly better than current Chinese Missiles but the new generation  Chinese missiles such as DF 41 , DF 31AG are equally or more capable, India can take an edge or at least can catch up with the Chinese missiles through Agni-6, K5,K6 etc. China has an advantage in hypersonic glide vehicles. India doesn’t have a HGV, but India also using the similar kind of technologies in its K series missiles and Shaurya Missile.
China has certainly has a numerical advantage over India , but considering the number of enemies and dividing their missiles across various enemies may diminish this numerical advantage , but in an all out Indo –China war China can use all of its Missiles against India. To avoid this situation India should develop a Ballistic missile defense system which should be far superior to current Indian BMD. India should develop a Network of Space based, Ground Based and air based sensor system to detect Chinese missile launches and their Transporter erector launch / rail launch systems. But setting up such a huge network will need to pump a lot of money and effort, but is possible when India is turn to be an economical super power. And India can ask help from its allies like USA, Japan, Israel, Australia etc to finding Chinese missile locations / Launch, which will certainly improve the chances of intercepting the Ballistic Missile fired from China. 

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    Varun Karthikeyan
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