China has recently unveiled its latest foray into the world of high tech weaponry. At the Zhuhai Air Show 2024, China revealed its GDF-600 hypersonic boost glide concept vehicle that will have a wide range of capabilities as you will see in this posting.
The GDF-600 will be designed to have an operational range of between 500 and 1000 kilometres which could theoretically be extended to 6000 kilometres at speeds of between Mach 7 and Mach 10 (5369 mph to 7673 mph) at a maximum altitude of 40 kilometres. Its design allows it to penetrate modern air defences and can be used for both anti-ship and land-attack purposes. It has a launch mass of 5000 kilograms and a payload capacity of 1200 kilograms. One of the key aspects of the GDF-600 is its sub-munition separation system which will give it the capability to release different payload types while in-flight. These sub-payloads include:
1.) supersonic missiles with ranges of between 100 to 500 kilometres at speeds of between 2400 and 6000 kmph
2.) subsonic missiles with ranges of between 50 to 100 kilometres at speeds of between 730 and 1030 kmph
3.) cruise missiles with a ranges of between 10 and 80 kilometres at speeds of between 300 and 600 kmph
4.) aerial bombs with a range of 70 kilometres
5.) drones with an operating range of between 2 and 15 kilometres
These wide-ranging munitions will allow the GDF-600 to be used for multiple purposes including direct kinetic strikes against specific targets, reconnaissance missions and electronic warfare. The fact that these munitions can be released at various points along the GDF-600s trajectory allow it to make simultaneous strikes on several targets at the same time which will complicate the defense response of its adversaries.
Here is a photo of the mockup GDF-600 showing its multiple payload capabilities:
Here is a video providing additional information about the GDF-600:
This very significant advancement in China's hypersonic weapons capabilities stands in sharp contrast to the United States troubled experience with hypersonic weaponry. For example, the Air Force's AGM-183A ARRW which, as you can see here, is not operational at this point in time:
Additionally, the United States Army's Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon aka Dark Eagle is also not ready for deployment as shown here:
The addition of the GDF-600 to China's growing arsenal of high tech weapons will make any intervention against the nation in its ongoing tiff with Taiwan and its territorial claims in the South China Sea more complicated particularly given that the weapon will have a wide range of anti-ship capabilities. As well, its ability to conduct electronic warfare could disrupt communications and radar which would significantly compromise the ability of the United States and its proxies to defend against the GDF-600.
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