China conducted a flight test of the DF-41 road-mobile missile | World Defense

China conducted a flight test of the DF-41 road-mobile missile

BLACKEAGLE

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China conducted a flight test of the DF-41 road-mobile missile

This week, Bill Gertz reported that earlier this month, China conducted the fourth flight test in three years of its new intercontinental ballistic missile, DF-41 road-mobile ICBM. Indicating that the missile is nearing deployment.


Chinese DF-41 road-mobile missile launcher

“The DF-41, with a range of between 6,835 miles and 7,456 miles, is viewed by the Pentagon as Beijing’s most potent nuclear missile and one of several new long-range missiles in development or being deployed,” Gertz reports.

He goes on to note that this is the fourth time in the past three years that China has tested the DF-41, indicating that the missile is nearing deployment. Notably, according to Gertz, in the latest test China shot two independently targetable warheads from the DF-41, further confirming that the DF-41 will hold multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRV).

As I’ve noted before, China’s acquisition of a MIRVed capability is one of the most dangerous nuclear weapons developments that no one is talking about.

MIRVed missiles carry payloads of several nuclear warheads each capable of being directed at a different set of targets. They are considered extremely destabilizing to the strategic balance primarily because they place a premium on striking first and create a “use em or lose em” nuclear mentality.
China conducted a flight test of the DF-41 road-mobile missile 32008152 | August 2015 Global Defense Security news UK | Defense Security global news industry army 2015
 

Corzhens

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That road missile is obviously dangerous with the capability to hit a target of more than 6,000 miles. And why is it not an international issue? Is it because China is cool unlike other countries that are provocative? That ICBM is not a joke. It can be used as leverage by China in bullying small countries in the southeast Asia like the Philippines and Vietnam.
 

explorerx7

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There is much activity at present in the development of ballistic by countries which have the capabilities to do so. To some extent, this can be a very worrying situation. What if a misguided administrator of one of the weapons should decide he needs to strike? The more widespread these weapons are the greater the risk of this happening. The other side of the coin, however, is that under normal circumstances the possibility of a strike amongst capable nations should be minimal, because of resulting equal devastation from retaliation.
 
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