The DF-17, which made its public debut in Beijing’s 2019 military parade, is designed to deliver a hypersonic glide vehicle at speeds above Mach 5, making interception extremely challenging. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV has for the first time aired footage showing the launch of a Dongfeng-17 (DF-17) hypersonic missile, a move analysts say strengthens Beijing’s deterrent posture across the strategically vital first island chain. The broadcast, carried on a military news programme on Saturday, showed a road-mobile DF-17 launcher deploying and a follow-up vertical launch, alongside scenes of multi-service drills at a rocket force training area in the Gobi Desert,…
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