China Army Practices Missile Strikes on US Patriot Launchers and Humvees
- The Chinese People’s Liberation Army has refined attack helicopter tactics designed to suppress and destroy U.S.
- The drills, revealed by China’s state television CCTV in June during a live-fire exercise, highlight war-fighting skills intended for the early phases of any future assault against Taiwan,...
- During the exercises, aviation units used drones and helicopters equipped with laser designators to mark targets.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army has refined attack helicopter tactics designed to suppress and destroy U.S. missile defenses and ground vehicles, practicing live-fire missile strikes against mockups of Patriot anti-missile launchers and Army Humvees, according to an Army think tank report.
CCTV Footage Exposes 2027 Invasion Preparations
The drills, revealed by China’s state television CCTV in June during a live-fire exercise, highlight war-fighting skills intended for the early phases of any future assault against Taiwan, the report by the Army’s China Land Power Studies Center stated. Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered the PLA to be ready for an invasion by 2027.
Coordinated Drones and Laser Designators
During the exercises, aviation units used drones and helicopters equipped with laser designators to mark targets. According to the report, the units launched 70mm rockets and KD-9 precision-guided munitions at airborne and ground targets, including mockups of high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles and Patriot advanced capability PAC-3 missile launchers.
The exercises demonstrate improving doctrine for the coordinated and complex suppression of enemy air defenses, known as SEAD, and the destruction of enemy air defenses, or DEAD, prior to offensive operations. Tactics include flying close-to-ground flight paths to evade radar detection, employing hunter-killer tactics with laser targeting, and firing precision weapons via datalink information sharing.
State television footage showed the PLA utilizing an advanced KVD-002 drone for air defense suppression alongside attack helicopters. The drone performs dual roles, executing air and ground strikes while providing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance for strike mission planning.
Xinjiang Desert Mockups and Aircraft
The exercises featured Z-18 light attack helicopters, Z-20 assault helicopters, and the KVD-002 drone attacking the mockups, alongside Russian-made PLA MI-171 transport helicopters. The participating unit was identified as the PLA’s 84th Army Aviation Brigade, based in the western Xinjiang military district.
The training builds on broader PLA practice involving desert mockups. China’s military has constructed full-scale targets in the Xinjiang and Taklamakan Deserts, including shapes of Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, aircraft carriers, and Taiwan government buildings, identified by U.S. experts as tools for precision strike training and military artificial intelligence models for a Pacific conflict.
Mirroring 1991 Persian Gulf War Doctrine
According to the Army think tank report, the exercise indicates the PLA has adopted lessons from the United States military during the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Specifically, the report pointed to Task Force Normandy, an operation in which U.S. Army units used Apache and Pave Low helicopters to destroy Iraqi radar and air defense sites to open a corridor for invading forces.
The report notes that the PLA expects to encounter an extensive integrated air defense system in future conflicts. Consequently, the military is developing methods to destroy or damage that network using units such as Z-10s and Z-20Ts to open gaps for follow-on air force and navy airstrikes.