China says National Day military parade ‘won’t disappoint’ in scale or advanced weapons
- President Xi Jinping will inspect 15,000 troops, more than 160 aircraft and 580 active weapon systems during the event on October 1
- Strategic nuclear missile systems – including the DF-41 ICBM – will appear at the end, according to insider
Although it will not feature the largest number of soldiers to have taken part in a National Day parade, officials at the briefing said the event “would not disappoint” in terms of either scale or advanced weapons on display.
Major General Tan Min said all of the advanced weapon systems in the parade would be Chinese-made, but he declined to say whether the cutting-edge DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missile would be included.
Seventy years ago, there was also a grand military parade in Beijing when then-chairman Mao Zedong declared the founding of the People’s Republic of China. More than 19,000 People’s Liberation Army soldiers took part, but the military hardware on show was limited – there were 17 aircraft in the flyover and nine of them appeared twice to make the air force look bigger.
According to Cai, of the 59 units taking part, 47 are squads on the ground and about a dozen are airborne squadrons, each led by two senior commanders with the rank of general.