Two ballistic missiles, the Dongfeng41 and Dongfeng-17, the most advanced in China, are on display to the public these days on the artificial grass esplanade that gives access to the Beijing Exhibition Center, a Soviet-style mega complex with three giant rooms that these days are immersed in hundreds of models and photographs depicting the achievements of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) during the last decade under the command of Xi Jinping.
The last time the Chinese saw these bullets up close was three years ago when they were paraded in Tiananmen Square to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic. The DF41, one of the longest-range missiles in the world (an ICBM that reaches more than 12.000km), can carry multiple nuclear warheads and hit any part of the US coast. Attached to the DF-17 at medium range there is a hypersonic gliding vehicle that makes interception by traditional missile defenses almost impossible.
Along with these two rockets, one of the most advanced combat drones can also be seen on display: the stealthy GJ-11 Sharpe Sword, nicknamed "sharp sword“, Capable of flying at nearly 1.000 kilometers per hour while firing ammunition with extreme precision.
A jewel of the Chinese army, according to analysts, could be the The GJ-II, also nicknamed "sharp sword“, Considered the ace in the hole to attack Taiwan, able to evade the Taiwanese defenses.
Anyone wishing to see the two ballistic missiles and the drone in action can search CCTV, the Chinese state network, for an eight-part report on the most innovative Chinese weapons. A show with many missile launches that started airing before the start of the CCP leadership congress, where other senior officials of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) are expected to be selected to fill new seats in the mighty Politburo. In one of the CCTV programs, the military was seen testing DF-15 and DF-16 short-range ballistics. Both were used during the invasion drills of Taiwan last August, following the provocation by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for visiting the autonomous island that China considers a separatist province. In another of the chapters the developments of modern weapons of "new generation for the future war ”.
Baptized as “invisible missiles”, the hypersonic ones DF-17 they are launched from mobile vehicles, equipped with artificial intelligence technology, capable of evading detection by satellites, radars and drones. "I believe that on the battlefields of the future, our counterparts will neither see us nor know where our missile launchers are.“Explained EPL researcher Yang Biwu.
The DF-17 is believed to be the world's first active hypersonic gliding vehicle weapon capable of penetrating US anti-missile shields in the region.
The invisibility of the missiles is made possible by a huge piece of cloth topped with a thin strip that contains many tiny 3D printed circuit boards that can manipulate electromagnetic waves. Below is what researchers call a "metasurface ", made of thin plastic and metals, which allows you to change the direction of a return signal. In combat, the cloak could hide all kinds of ground weapons from spy radar satellites, such as a line of dozen tanks. With the "invisibility cloak“A missile capable of causing an electromagnetic pulse that disconnects all the enemy's electronic devices is promoted by means of EPL communications.
For example, if that weapon fell into the hands of the Ukrainians, they would use it to disable a Russian air strike capability. By increasing power and targeting a small town, it could shut down the entire banking, transportation and communications network.
These days from the CCTV state network program it was said that China will soon have a new fighter jet for the main aircraft carrier called Fujian, unveiled last summer and equipped with an advanced electricity-powered catapult system that could launch a plane with a heavier load. Beijing has three aircraft carriers and is building more. Currently, the PLA has a fighter jet on the aircraft carrier, the J15, which was manufactured in China based on a Soviet-designed Su-33 prototype.