NEW DELHI: A study by the People’s Liberation Army ( PLA ) suggests that China’s Fire Dragon 480 missiles, developed by Norinco Group, could pose a significant threat to US warships. According to a report from the South China Morning Post, this long-range jet is regarded as a formidable military ballistic missile because of its high impact velocity and precision-guided sensors.
Li Jiangjiang, a professor with the PLA’s 92228 system, emphasized the rocket’s capabilities in a document, saying,” Its warhead surpasses the 400kg mark, considerably outweighing that of a typical anti- ship missile. Moreover, its effects speed exceeds 500 feet ( 1, 640 foot ) per minute, ensuring that a 10, 000- kilo ship would be destroyed upon being struck by just two of these weapons”.
The Fire Dragon 480 may have a 290km posted variety, but the study suggests that it has the potential to hit targets up to 500km aside. The missile may be launched from a high-speed smart turned platform, which makes it both affordable and flexible to harsh surroundings.
The PLA’s model involved launching 12 Fire Dragon 480 missiles at two Ticonderoga- group ships. Despite the defense maneuvers of the US warships, which included firing air defence missiles and activating the Phalanx close-in weapon system, one of the cruisers was sunk, according to the simulation.
Additionally, the investigation looked into the use of” swarm warheads,” where drones are used to attack security systems and give specific target coordinates for later rocket attacks. According to the SCMP document, this technique revealed a nearly zero success rate for the Ticonderoga- school cruisers in the simulation.
Li emphasized the need to improve China’s long-range spacecraft launcher system and strengthen the anti-interference capabilities and data connections between the missiles and drones to maximize the effectiveness of these measures.
However, the US is slowly retiring its Ticonderoga- school cruisers in favor of more contemporary ones, with the last one expected to retire in 2027.
