Why hasn't the West been able to produce a "long-range air-to-air missile" like the PL-15? The answer is actually quite straightforward, with three core reasons. The first is that the West cannot produce a "dual-pulse engine," because they believe the technology is too complex and difficult to develop. Therefore, the West has focused on "ramjet engines."
The PL-15 can have a range of over 200 kilometers and reach speeds up to 5 Maches, which is a direct challenge to all kinds of opponents. Western countries, especially the United States, have been trying for years. The AIM-260 project was launched specifically to counter it, but it's still stuck in the testing phase. The core issues are three: the engine technology is not up to standard, material control is lagging, and the production path is outdated.
Let's start with the first one, the engine is the most noticeable issue. The PL-15 uses a dual-pulse solid rocket engine, simply put, it burns fuel in two stages. The first stage pushes the missile out, then glides to save fuel; the second stage gives a final burst of power when close to the target, instantly accelerating to catch up with the enemy aircraft. This design increases the range while maintaining high maneuverability. Public reports show that it allows the missile to maintain high kinetic energy in the terminal phase, offering a much larger interception window. In contrast, the West long ago considered dual-pulse too complicated, with difficulty controlling the ignition sequence and problems with fuel stability, which could lead to explosions. So they focused on ramjet engines. For example, the European Meteor missile relies entirely on ramjet propulsion, drawing in air and burning fuel, with a range of about 150 kilometers, but only reaching 3 to 3.5 Maches. It drags an intake during flight, causing high resistance and making its trajectory easily disturbed.
In the U.S., the AIM-260 originally tried to follow the dual-pulse approach, but testing kept having issues. A 2025 report said that several test flights showed the first pulse worked, but the second pulse caused vibration, leading to overheating and explosion of the casing. Engineers at Lockheed Martin spent years trying to match the timing controller with the fuel flow, but heat buildup couldn't be dissipated. The Navy got impatient and even modified the ship-launched Standard-6 missile, removing the booster and mounting it on the F/A-18, creating the AIM-174B, claiming a range of over 400 kilometers. However, this missile weighs 1,500 kilograms, twice as heavy as the PL-15, limiting the aircraft's altitude, capped at 15,000 meters. When facing high-altitude targets, it has poor maneuverability and a heavy engine load, exposing its weaknesses in actual combat. The West took the wrong path. Although ramjets save oxidizers, they start slowly, and storing liquid fuel is complicated, resulting in low overall efficiency. Ultimately, they thought the dual-pulse threshold was high and chose to take a detour, but ended up in a dead end.
The second problem is materials and control technology, which are the most critical bottlenecks. For missiles to fly far and fast, the body must be light yet withstand high temperatures, otherwise it will disintegrate mid-flight. The PL-15 uses high-performance carbon fiber with more than 92% carbon content, tensile strength exceeding 3,500 MPa, reducing the missile's weight and allowing it to fit into the J-20's weapons bay. China has already localized carbon fiber production, with prices half as low and stable output. High-temperature heads are even more critical. During acceleration, temperatures can reach 2,000°C, requiring ceramic matrix composites. Carbon silicon fiber mesh, filled with special matrices, can withstand 1,800°C for 300 seconds without damage. Control-wise, folding rudders are a specialty. Wings fold and hide inside the bay, then unfold within milliseconds after launch to lock onto the target, with tolerances controlled at micrometer level, ensuring high mechanical precision.
In the West, carbon fiber production capacity lags behind. Joint Carbon Company had a chemical leak accident early on, closing down, and now military use is barely sufficient, with civil use needing to import from Japan, increasing costs. High-temperature materials, American advanced coatings can only last 150 seconds before cracking, unable to endure long periods of high-speed flight. Control technology has been tested for over a decade, but folding wings often get stuck, delayed unfolding, and simulated flight deviates from the track. Either the missile is too large to fit into stealth bays or too small, leading to less fuel and reduced range. Public analysis suggests that the West struggles with aerodynamic optimization, with harsh environments for guidance heads and weak interference resistance. The PL-15's phased array radar head locks on and doesn't let go, with strong terminal maneuverability. The European Meteor's ramjet design drags an intake, restricting angles, and is prone to stalling at high attack angles. Material gaps aren't just a day or two. U.S. reports admit that ceramic composite development lags, fiber strength is low, and overall weight control is problematic.
The third reason is low production capacity combined with path dependency, which is the most severe hindrance. China's PL-15 relies on automated lines, producing 100 units per day, with a fully localized supply chain, no delays from sea freight. Public videos show robot arms welding parts, efficient and stable quality. The AIM-120D, however, is still manually assembled in the U.S., producing a maximum of 500 units per year, with parts relying on foreign suppliers, and the supply chain would collapse if interrupted.
Path dependency is even more fatal. For decades, the West has relied on warning aircraft to guide medium-range missiles. The AIM-120 from A to D has only been modified in the guidance head and fuel, with the engine core unchanged. They think 160 kilometers is enough, with long-range warnings. Europe is even more extreme, betting on the Meteor's ramjet, ignoring the potential of solid rockets. By the time the PL-15 made its appearance, it was too late to change direction. Weak fundamentals, small wind tunnels, inaccurate simulations; old production lines, slow breakthroughs. Even though the U.S. Congress has allocated funds, the inertia is strong, and upgrading existing missiles is easier, while new projects carry high risks. The result is a cycle: knowing the problems, but unable to fix them; wanting to build new ones, but lacking the foundation.
These three reasons are interlinked and indispensable. Without dual-pulse, range won't increase; weak material control leads to unstable flight; outdated production paths result in low quantity and quality. The West isn't short of money or intelligence, but started late and took the wrong path. The PL-15 successfully tested in 2015 and has since been widely deployed, with rapid iterations. The AIM-260 is expected to enter small-scale production in 2026, with a range of 260 kilometers, but testing has been delayed, and stability remains to be proven. The Meteor has been exported to many countries, but it's slow and easy to evade. Looking ahead, the West needs to invest heavily to reshape the supply chain, push breakthroughs in dual-pulse and materials, or else the gap will widen. In the matter of military balance, technological iteration is fast, and taking a wrong path makes catching up very difficult.
Overall, the West's inability to produce it isn't due to bad luck, but systemic issues. Early technical choices were fixed, material foundations are weak, and manufacturing models are outdated. In 2025, the PL-15E made its debut in the India-Pakistan conflict, with debris falling in India, verifying its performance. In the future, the missile war will depend on who can iterate faster and balance range, maneuverability, and production capacity better.
Original source: www.toutiao.com/article/1847564355209288/
Disclaimer: This article represents the views of the author.