China Builds Full-Scale Mock Targets for Military Drills

Satellite images analyzed by The Telegraph reveal a network of full-size models across China’s interior deserts and training grounds. The constructions include a 3-D replica of a U.S. Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, a 23-mile railway that moves mock warships, and a 280 km tunnel linking mock Taiwanese government buildings for underground-escape scenarios. Additional mock-ups feature F-35, F-16 and F-22 fighter jets, a replica of the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan, Taiwan’s Su’ao Naval Base, and a rudimentary sand-line model of Taichung’s dual-use airfield. Images from 2022 show a missile strike that destroyed a black arch-shaped model at the Su’ao replica, indicating live-fire testing.

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Analysts say the replicas enable China to rehearse long-range missile launches and anti-access drills against specific adversary assets. Former Taiwanese navy lieutenant Lu Li-shih explains that modeling Yokosuka reflects its expected role in any U.S. response to a Taiwan contingency. Former Indian navy rear admiral Monty Khanna describes the overall scale as “unprecedented,” underscoring a shift from abstract training to scenario-specific rehearsals.

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The mock-up program serves both operational and signaling purposes. Thomas Shugart of the Center for a New American Security argues the damage to the models demonstrates “credible long-range strike capability.” Observers note that such demonstrations have already prompted increased defense spending across the Indo-Pacific, with several nations citing Chinese aggression as a primary driver.

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• “They're basically creating replicas to provide them with the ability to maneuver through there on a training operation as though they were standing in Taipei,” — Sean O'Connor, lead satellite image analyst at defence firm Janes

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• “It's one of the most important US bases. If China attacked Taiwan, the Yokosuka Naval Base would presumably be involved so they include a model of Yokosuka for anti-access aerial denial drills,” — Lu Li-shih

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• “If they launch a rocket from China, it will have to go over Taiwan's mountains, so they need to practice launching the rockets at a particular angle, which they might not have to do if they were targeting a navy base on the west coast like Zuoying,” — Mr. Lu, the former lieutenant previously stationed at Su'ao

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• “These aren't close-range, controlled demonstrations. You're looking at missile launches from kilometres away… That alone points to credible long-range strike capability,” — Mr. Symon, a geo-intelligence researcher at the AI-analysis firm The Intel Lab

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• “It's messaging to Japan that 'if there's a fight, you're going to be in it.' It's messaging to the US that 'if you try to intervene, we're going to strike your bases.' And messaging to Taiwan that 'we are practicing to take your capital,'” — Mr. Shugart. And

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