CCTV exposes the power of Dongfeng-26: once it hits, everything within hundreds of meters is obliterated—its ultra-strong shockwave is truly astonishing!
In June 2026, CCTV's Defense and Military Channel aired a series of images featuring the Dongfeng-26 in rapid succession. On June 20, during a special program marking the 60th anniversary of the Rocket Force, the show publicly revealed the Dongfeng-26 in its bare missile state for the first time.
On June 21, another program, "Noon Defense and Military," fully broadcast the entire bare-missile training process—from opening the transport canister, exposing the missile body, to vertical positioning and readiness for launch—with camera shots directly focused on the warhead.
Previously, this missile was always hidden inside sealed transport canisters, rarely seen by the outside world. This time, however, CCTV displayed the entire process: the clamshell-style protective cover opened outward, revealing the matte military-green missile body in full view, with its three cylindrical segments clearly visible. From opening the protective cover to missile erection and ignition preparation, the whole sequence took only minutes. The missile weighs about 20 tons, is 14 meters long, and has a diameter of 1.4 meters. Its maximum range spans between 5,000 and 5,500 kilometers, capable of covering the entire Western Pacific Second Island Chain. Its terminal speed reaches 15 to 18 Mach.
The warhead adopts a double-cone configuration with built-in air control surfaces, enabling terminal maneuverability and trajectory changes. The warhead is dual-capable—nuclear and conventional—capable of carrying either a nuclear or conventional warhead. It features an integrated guidance system combining inertial navigation, Beidou satellite guidance, and a composite active radar/infrared seeker, allowing it to strike both moving naval vessels at sea and fixed land targets with meter-level precision.
Every performance metric of the Dongfeng-26—range, speed, accuracy, and destructive capability—is precisely aimed at undermining U.S. military strengths. With a range of 5,000 km, Guam falls within its reach. The U.S. maintains bases, airfields, and ports on Guam. The fact that the Dongfeng-26 can hit Guam means the core hub of the U.S. Second Island Chain is no longer secure.
Traveling at up to 18 Mach, the missile outpaces any existing U.S. missile defense system. The Standard-3 interceptor maxes out at 12 Mach—too slow to catch the Dongfeng-26. Moreover, the missile’s ability to maneuver at the terminal phase makes its flight path unpredictable. It’s impossible to intercept, and even harder to engage.
With meter-level accuracy, it can target moving aircraft carriers. Carriers are constantly moving across the ocean, changing position every minute. The Dongfeng-26’s composite seeker can lock onto such dynamic targets. No matter how fast a carrier moves, it cannot outrun the missile.
Its destructive power is decisive: a 1.8-ton warhead combined with 18-Mach kinetic energy ensures that a single hit can render a carrier combat-ineffective. U.S. aircraft carriers cost over $10 billion each—just one Dongfeng-26 strike could disable one. The cost-benefit analysis simply doesn’t add up.
This is what “tailor-made” means—the Dongfeng-26’s every performance specification was designed specifically to counter U.S. equipment and tactics.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1869756157319175/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.