How Serbia is increasing its air capabilities with Chinese missiles

Previously known to be in service with Pakistan, the Chinese-made CM-400 air-to-surface missile has now appeared on Serbian MiG-29 fighter jets.

In a surprising development, Serbia has emerged as an operator of the Chinese-made CM-400 supersonic air-launched missile. The weapon is integrated into MiG-29 Fulcrum of Serbia's Soviet era, which have undergone various improvements.

As it stands, the Balkan state, which has had a turbulent recent history, likely has a missile capability unmatched in Europe (at least outside of Russia).

A photo has recently surfaced showing a MiG-29 of the Serbian Air Force and Air Defense carrying a pair of CM-400 missiles in internal strongpoints under the wings.

There had been previous reports that Serbia might be ready to introduce a powerful new weapon of some kind.

According to the Belgrade-based defense journalist, Petar Vojinovq, the Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, General Milan Mojsilović, stated last month that “in the air component, we have weapons with a range and maximum lethality similar [to the PULS rocket artillery system].”

Mojsilović was referring to the Israeli-made PULS (Precision and Universal Launch System) system, as it was recently introduced by the Serbian Army.

As we reported yesterday, the Serbian Air Force showcased, for the first time, that they are in possession of Chinese-made CM-400 supersonic air-ground missiles, with a reported range of up to 400 km.

This makes Serbia the second foreign customer, after Pakistan.

Pair of missiles… pic.twitter.com/Yo2Utzf8DV

—Peter Voinovich (@PeterVoinovich) March 10, 2026

Furthermore, Vučić recently alluded to the recently unveiled military capabilities, stating: “…people could not dream of everything we have, everything we are gaining, they could not dream.”

As for the CM-400, this weapon was developed and produced by the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC), apparently primarily for export. So far, it is not known whether it is in Chinese military service.

Unveiled in 2012, the CM-400 is about 17 feet long, has a diameter of 16 inches, and weighs approximately 2,000 pounds. It carries one of two types of nuclear warheads, either a high-explosive charge weighing 330 pounds or an armor-piercing missile warhead weighing 440 pounds.

The CM-400 is a supersonic weapon, and CASIC claims it can reach speeds of Mach 4.5 in its final phase of flight. It is often described as a hypersonic missile, but that is most likely not the case: Mach 5 is usually considered the boundary between supersonic and hypersonic speeds.

However, it is clearly a very fast rocket.

The missile's range remains unclear, with various explanations for this aspect of its performance.

At least, it is reported to have a range of 155 miles, while some sources claim it can hit targets at a range of 186 miles or even 250 miles.

The CM-400 has also been described as a quasi-ballistic missile, although this is probably not entirely accurate.

In general, a quasi-ballistic missile is capable of being used in  a low trajectory This makes the missile more capable of significant maneuvering in flight, presenting greater challenges even to adversaries with more powerful missile defense capabilities.

In the case of the CM-400, the missile is said to fly on a relatively high ballistic trajectory, powered by its solid-fuel rocket motor. It then moves towards its target at a steep angle of descent. While it may also be able to dynamically maneuver during the final attack phase, to attack moving ships, as far as we know, it does not fly on a low trajectory.

In terms of targets, the missile has been broadly described as an anti-ship missile, specifically as a ' aircraft killer '. In fact, the basic weapon can also be configured as an anti-radiation missile, and is also supposed to have the ability to attack ground targets that do not emit radioactive rays.

Depending on the different targets, the CM-400 can have different seeker heads mounted. All versions have an inertial guidance system with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) correction. For the terminal stage, it relies on an infrared/optoelectronic seeker to engage naval targets, or a passive radar seeker to eliminate electromagnetic emitters. The circular error probable (CEP) for the anti-radiation version is claimed to be 16-33, reduced to 16 feet or less for the anti-ship version.

Previously, the only confirmed export operator of the CM-400 was Pakistan, which uses it on its JF-17 Thunder multi-role fighter jets. Pakistani officials stated that the missile was successfully used in combat against Indian S-400 air defense systems during the conflict between the countries in May last year. However, this remains unconfirmed.

In Serbian service, the CM-400 is carried by MiG-29 fighter jets. These aircraft were first purchased by the then Yugoslavia in the 1980s. The surviving aircraft of Operation Allied Force in 1999 were later supplemented with second-hand MiG-29s from Russian and Belarusian stocks. The aircraft have also been moderately upgraded and are now known as the MiG-29SM+. Fourteen examples are currently in service. in active Serbian service.

The long-term plan for Serbia's MiG-29 is somewhat unclear, as the country ordered 12 of the multi-role fighter jets. Dassault Rafale , in an agreement you can read more about here.

However, for now, with the CM-400, Serbia appears to have secured a capability that is most likely unique in the wider region.

With its combination of very high speed, long range and “fire and forget” guidance, the missile is ideal for long-range attacks. It is optimized to hit fortified strategic targets, day and night, and in all weather conditions.

Thanks to CATIC's Independent Weapon Fire Control System (SWFCS), also designated as WZHK-1 by China, the CM-400 (and other Chinese missiles) is designed to allow foreign aircraft models to operate Chinese missiles and bombs.

Talking to  Janes  During the exhibition, a CATIC official said the system is designed to equip a wide range of Chinese air-launched weapons and can be installed on existing weapon points.

"The system gives air forces around the world the ability to easily integrate Chinese-made weapons with their aircraft without requiring them to make software or hardware changes to the host aircraft," a CATIC official told Janes regarding SWFCS in 2024.

“[SWFCS] uses a wireless data system that connects to a tablet in the cockpit that can be held by the pilot. The tablet acts as a portable wireless controller that the pilot can use to launch the missiles,” the official added. Similar tablet-based solutions have also been used by Ukraine to rapidly integrate Western weapons into Soviet-era fighter jets.

The same SWFCS interface is also being used to carry another Chinese air-to-ground weapon, the LS-6 precision-guided munition. This is a 1,100-pound-class weapon that combines a general-purpose bomb with a belt-mounted upgrade package to provide extended range and precision-strike capabilities.

Meanwhile, weapons in the CM-400 class are a response to the growing threat posed by ground-based air defense systems, which are pushing fighter jets further and further away from the targets they are assigned to destroy.

With its very high maximum speed, the CM-400 is also suitable for attacking time-sensitive targets, which may also include mobile air defense systems or mobile ballistic missiles, provided that their coordinates can be determined within the required time frame.

For Serbia, the new missile appears to offer a relatively easy way to expand its high-precision air strike capability. With a high degree of flexibility, fast response time, and the ability to penetrate most enemy air defenses, it is a powerful weapon for what is otherwise a fairly modest air force.

It is also interesting that Serbia is turning to China to meet its missile needs, instead of Russia.

While Belgrade and Moscow have traditionally had good relations, purchasing Russian weapons has become much more difficult since the West imposed sanctions in response to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

However, even before this, there were signs that Serbia was looking to move away from Russia as its main arms supplier. As such, it has increasingly moved into a more Western-oriented orbit, with purchases from Airbus, for example, but is also buying weapons from China and Israel.

At the same time, the Serbian military is increasingly moving towards NATO-style doctrine and equipment, including exercises alongside the US Air Force.

Given the fact that it can be integrated into non-Chinese platforms, it will be interesting to see if other countries will also adopt the CM-400.

The Geopost