 | DF-21
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Intermediate range ballistic missile. Year: 1988. IOC: 1988. Family: Long March. Country: China. Department of Defence Designation: CSS-5. Popular Name: Dong Feng-21. JL-1 land based version. 2 stage vehicle. Manufacturer: Shanxi. Launches: 9. Failures: 3. Success Rate: 66.67%. First Launch Date: 1985-05-01. Last Launch Date: 2007-01-11. Launch data is: incomplete. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi). Total Mass: 14,664 kg (32,328 lb). Core Diameter: 1.40 m (4.50 ft). Total Length: 10.43 m (34.21 ft). Span: 1.40 m (4.50 ft). Standard warhead mass: 600 kg (1,320 lb). Maximum range: 1,810 km (1,120 mi). Number Standard Warheads: 1. Standard warhead yield: 250 KT. Boost Propulsion: Solid rocket. Guidance: Inertial. Total Number Built: 50.
DF-21 Chronology 1985 May - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi). References: 1946.
1992 April 29 - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. FAILURE: Failure. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. References: 1864.
1992 May - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. FAILURE: Failure. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. References: 1972.
1993? - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. FAILURE: Failure. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. References: 1864.
1995 Jul - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi). References: 1010.
1995 November 10 - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi). References: 1864.
1996 January 10 - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi). References: 1864.
1996 December 28 - Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. - Test mission Nation: China. Agency: PRC. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi). References: 1864.
2007 January 11 - 22:28 GMT - Launch Site: Xichang. Launch Vehicle: DF-21. - Chinese ASAT destroys FY-1C target satellite. Nation: China. Class: Military. Type: ASAT. Spacecraft: Chinese ASAT. Apogee: 850 km (520 mi). The FY-1C satellite, launched on 10 May 1999, was presumably well past the end of its operational life. It was destroyed in a test of a Chinese ASAT weapon at an altitude of 850 km, 4 degrees west of Xichang. Launch vehicle was unknown, but a version of the DF-21 IRBM would be sufficient to reach that altitude. Reportedly the flight had been preceded by one to three earlier tests that were either failures or just aimed at a point in space. The program was apparently very secret, and the Chinese foreign ministry was caught by surprise by the test and the storm of international condemnation that followed. The FY-1C was blown into over 200 pieces of debris, adding immediately by 10% to the population of space junk that threatens lower-altitude satellites.
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