CHINA is building up a terrifying arsenal of weapons including hypersonic missiles that travel so fast they are impossible to stop. The country’s President Xi Jinping has made modernising the armed forces a key priority and wants it to have a “world class military” by 2050 capable of matching the United States. HYPERSONIC MISSILES China […]
CHINA is building up a terrifying arsenal of weapons including hypersonic missiles that travel so fast they are impossible to stop.
The country’s President Xi Jinping has made modernising the armed forces a key priority and wants it to have a “world class military” by 2050 capable of matching the United States.
China has invested a huge amount of time and money developing hypersonic missiles.
It is reported to have brought its newest carrier-killing missile fully into operation ahead of HMS Queen Elizabeth heading to the South China Sea.
The DF-17 can perform “extreme manoeuvers” as it hurtles at Mach 10 – some 7,600mph – towards a target, with carrier unlikely to survive a direct hit.
The missile comprises of a rocket with flies to around 25 miles above the earth and then launches a Hypersonic Glide Vehicle (HGV) armed with a warhead at a target.
Sidharth Kaushal, from the Royal United Services Institute, told The Sun Online that the missiles were a “game changer”.
Some analysts believe only artificial intelligence and computer systems can stop them.
Their sophisticated sensors, guidance systems and innovative propulsion methods have been compared to building the atomic bomb.
A terrifying new war machine that can unleash swarms of “suicide” drones at troops and tanks was unveiled last year.
Video showed dozens of the deadly devices being launched from a weapons system mounted to the back of a truck and also being dropped from helicopters.
Computer algorithms often modelled on biological studies of insects and fish are used to create self-navigating drone squadrons.
They can hover in the skies for up to 40 minutes while scouring for a target, according to experts from The War Zone website.
In the footage, the drones emerge from the launch tubes in canisters, which fall away to allow their wings to unfold.
According to a defence think tank, China may be planning to genetically-modify its soldiers for an army of Terminator-style super troops.
Experts at Rusi say the soldiers could be faster, stronger and cleverer than their battlefield opponents and even feel no pain.
Their DNA could also be adapted to help them recover more quickly from injuries or give them superior hearing and night vision.
Rusi’s Professor John Louth said: “The threat is obvious and real. Chinese money could be stealing a march on western armed forces and that is deeply concerning.”
A recent study found China that has significantly more than previously thought.
Estimates from the US Department of Defense had put the figure in the low 200s.
But the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists report put the figure at around 350.
The arsenal includes hypersonic missiles that can carry nuke warheads, intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched weapons.
Many of the weapons are deployed on enormous transporters which gives them greater survivability in the event of any conflict.
The arsenal also includes the JL-3 ‘Big Wave’ missile could reach the US if launched from Chinese coast.
As part of China’s bid for global supremacy, President Xi is promoting a ‘military-civil fusion’ strategy
Universities are playing a central role in maximising the country’s military power.
The Chinese constitution stipulates that all new technologies, even if developed by the private sector, must be shared with the military.
A key research institution is the National University of Defense Technology, in Hunan, which has links with eight British universities.
