Can China Launch A Missile Attack On A U.S. Navy Carrier?

James Holmes, National Interest: A Chinese Missile Attack on a U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier: Is It Possible?

You bet it is. Beijing has the weapons to do it.

The U.S. Navy, it seems, is optimized for the blue-water conflagration that’s least likely to occur. Question marks surround who would prevail in the scenarios that are most menacing and most likely to occur. Carrier-killing munitions may make the fortress fleet a going concern at last, long after the age of Mahan. And that suits Beijing fine.

Ah, yes, the “carrier-killer.” China is forever touting the array of guided missiles its weaponeers have devised to pummel U.S. Navy nuclear-powered aircraft carriers (CVNs). Most prominent among them are its DF-21D and DF-26 antiship ballistic missiles (ASBMs), which the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has made a mainstay of China’s anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) defenses.

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WNU Editor: This author has an opposing opinion .... Why China Can't Target U.S. Aircraft Carriers (Loren Thompson, Forbes).