Just days ahead of the US-Israeli air strikes on Iran, a news report suggested that Beijing was close to selling supersonic cruise missiles to Tehran – a move that could significantly boost the Islamic Republic’s capacity to counter US aircraft carriers.
Before the world could work out whether game-changing Chinese missiles really would feature in an Iranian conflict against US forces, Beijing firmly denied the report, published by Reuters on February 24.
Citing six sources, Reuters reported that the deal – involving the CM-302 export version of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) YJ-12 – was “near completion”. China’s foreign ministry said last Monday that the report was “not true”.
The YJ-12, known as the “aircraft-carrier killer”, is part of the Yingji or Eagle Strike family of anti-ship missiles operated by the PLA.
With a maximum velocity of Mach 4, high terminal manoeuvrability and potent 200kg (440lbs) semi-armour-piercing warhead, the YJ-12 could pose a great threat to large surface warships.
Despite a substantive reduction in the YJ-12’s range to meet export standards, if CM-302 missiles were deployed along the Iranian coastline, they would cover almost the entire Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and much of the Gulf of Oman.
Introducing the YJ-12 during its official debut in 2015, state broadcaster CCTV said the supersonic missile had a strong ability to penetrate the multilayered defences of modern warships.
“It is mainly tasked with striking large and medium-sized surface warships and their formations, serving as a critical means to seize and maintain maritime dominance,” the report said.
At four times the speed of sound, the YJ-12/CM-302 is faster than any fielded US anti-ship missiles, as well as Russia’s Kh-31AD and India’s BrahMos-A, making it one of the world’s fastest anti-ship cruise missiles in service.
By supporting multiple flight profiles and altitude alterations – including ultra-low-altitude sea-skimming during the cruise phase – and executing unpredictable manoeuvres in its terminal approach, the missile offers “exceptional” penetration against modern air defence systems.
“In anti-ship warfare, if a YJ-12 lowers its altitude and performs a stealthy penetration at such a speed in the final stage of its flight, the enemy would have difficulty responding in such a limited time,” the CCTV report said.
During cruise, the missile is guided by China’s BeiDou satellite navigation system as well as inertial navigation systems.
In-flight updates for real-time target reacquisition and midcourse corrections are provided by a network of transmission nodes, including satellites, airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and submarines.
In addition to its naval role, the missile can perform precision strikes against fixed ground targets, according to its developer, state-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation.
The PLA’s YJ-12 series has a range of 400km to 500km (250 to 300 miles). However, the export variant CM-302 has its range reduced to 290km (180 miles) to comply with international arms control regulations.
In addition to the air-launched YJ-12, there is a ship-launch option with the YJ-12A and a road-mobile version called the YJ-12B. If Iran were indeed interested, it would be most likely to be considering the land-based variant, as it lacks suitable air or naval platforms.
While the missile’s official specifications have not been disclosed, it is estimated to be 6.5 metres long, 0.5 metres in diameter and weigh about 2 tonnes – dimensions that would limit its air-launch platform to large bombers such as the PLA’s H-6.
The ship-launched and land-based variants are equipped with an additional rear-mounted rocket booster, which automatically separates at a predetermined velocity before the integrated ramjet engine ignites and accelerates the missile to supersonic speeds.
The missile features four lateral air intakes with rectangular canted inlets, arranged around the body in an axisymmetric X configuration, as well as four main wings and four tail fins for improved aerodynamics and manoeuvre control.
However, this design means the ship-launched YJ-12A cannot fit into the PLA Navy’s latest vertical launch systems aboard newer destroyers like the Type 055 or Type 052D.
As a result, it has only been installed on older warships, such as the PLA’s Russian-made Sovremenny-class destroyers and the Type 051B.
The YJ-12 was unveiled during the 2015 Victory Day military parade, and the CM-302 was introduced to international markets the following year.
Also in 2016, the PLA conducted a series of live-fire exercises in the South China Sea in protest against an arbitration ruling in The Hague that went against its territorial claims in the contested waterway.
Official footage of the drills showed a PLA Navy H-6 bomber launching multiple YJ-12 missiles in a demonstration of Beijing’s sea-denial capabilities.
Pakistan became the first foreign user of the CM-302, deploying the missiles on its four Chinese-built Type 054A/P Tughril-class frigates, commissioned between 2021 and 2023. In 2024, Algeria confirmed it was deploying land-based CM-302 missiles. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
