YJ-20

The YJ-20 is a hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile, featuring biconic aerodynamic configuration. The missile was first observed during the preparation of the 2025 China Victory Day Parade in August 2025. The missile was officially revealed at the Parade on the 3rd of September, 2025.

History

In 2022, an unidentified hypersonic missile was revealed by the Chinese Navy ahead of its 73rd anniversary, launching from a universal vertical launch system of the Type 055 destroyer. The Chinese Navy did not reveal the missile's designation, but defense analysts at that time believed it to be the ship-launched version of the YJ-21. However, with the emergence of the YJ-20 hypersonic missile in 2025, which has a more closely aligned shape to the unidentified missile launched by Type 055, analysts believed these were two separate missile developments.

Design

The YJ-20 is a hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile, featuring a biconic aerodynamic configuration. The configuration allows for manoeuvrable re-entry after its initial ballistic launch. The missile can be launched from surface vessels.