Gessler
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Operating from shallow waters and small islands which are prevalent in the IOR.. they could.
even then.. with a H-6 variant providing vectors .. they could launch Missiles much further out.
Almost all islands in IOR (especially those close to Malacca Strait) are under
IN radar surveillance 24x7. Air bases in A&N islands house MKIs currently
armed with 285-km Kh-59s and 130-km Kh-35E Switchblades, and would be
the first to receive the air-launched BrahMos-A1 in the near-future with 300km.
Among all the warships I've seen in PLAN, only the Type-052C Luyang-II DDG
has any chance of surviving an MKI attack, not even the Type-054A Jiangkai-II
FFGs have the capability to successfully evade the MKI threat and cross the
Malacca Strait, as it is I see no operational aircraft in PLAAF/PLANAF that can be
considered superior to MKI even in air combat.
The Tu-142 Bear-Fs can easily reach the area and they too can be equipped with
cruise missiles if the need arises. The Tu-142M has incredibly long range and
high speed and with MiG-29K escorts it too is a potent threat.
Secondly, it's very likely that mobile land-based BrahMos launchers can be
easily taken to A&N and stationed there (not to forget that almost all islands in
the chain are within BrahMos range of one another), this, coupled with high-end
radar systems rather much make the Malacca an impregable strait for PLAN
warships.
About the FACs getting 100km within a CBG, forget it. I doubt
even if the 054A FFGs can get 100km within Viraat/Vikramaditya CBGs without
suffering considerable attrition from both sea and air attacks which will
force them to retreat even before they get to threaten the CBG.