Which statement about the Dong Feng 21 missile is true?

Which statement about the Dong Feng 21 missile is true?

• A. It is described as the first anti-ship ballistic missile
• B. It is a supersonic anti-ship cruise missile
• C. It is the Guam killer missile
• D. It is a YJ-18

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that this missile family includes an anti-ship variant, making it the first widely discussed anti-ship ballistic missile. The DF-21 lineage is a land-based ballistic system, and its DF-21D variant is designed to strike ships at sea using a ballistic trajectory with terminal guidance to hit moving naval targets. That combination—ballistic flight profile plus ship-targeting capability—defines it as an anti-ship ballistic missile, which is why describing it as the first of its kind is the correct statement. The other options mix up different weapon types: a cruise missile would follow a guided, aerodynamic path rather than a ballistic one, and the DF-21 isn’t the same as the YJ-18, which is a separate anti-ship cruise missile. The nickname “Guam killer” is more of a media label than a confirmed, official classification, and reaching Guam with a DF-21 variant involves ranges and conditions that are not reliably established.

The key idea is that this missile family includes an anti-ship variant, making it the first widely discussed anti-ship ballistic missile. The DF-21 lineage is a land-based ballistic system, and its DF-21D variant is designed to strike ships at sea using a ballistic trajectory with terminal guidance to hit moving naval targets. That combination—ballistic flight profile plus ship-targeting capability—defines it as an anti-ship ballistic missile, which is why describing it as the first of its kind is the correct statement.

The other options mix up different weapon types: a cruise missile would follow a guided, aerodynamic path rather than a ballistic one, and the DF-21 isn’t the same as the YJ-18, which is a separate anti-ship cruise missile. The nickname “Guam killer” is more of a media label than a confirmed, official classification, and reaching Guam with a DF-21 variant involves ranges and conditions that are not reliably established.