In a move that signals a significant leap in short-range naval defense technology, China has revealed a prototype weapon system capable of countering some of the most challenging threats in modern warfare: low-flying drones, cruise missiles, and even hypersonic anti-ship weapons. Featured in the April issue of the Chinese defense journal Modern Weaponry, the new system is being touted by Chinese sources as the world’s first of its kind — a terminal defense platform that creates a literal wall of bullets.
The announcement underscores China’s shifting military strategy toward high-volume, rapid-response systems that emphasize saturating firepower to blunt increasingly sophisticated, fast, and unmanned aerial threats. At the center of this evolution is a multi-barrel barrage weapon informally dubbed the “Metal Storm,” referencing both its Australian conceptual roots and the dense cloud of firepower it unleashes.
The system’s most striking feature is its 16 tightly grouped 35mm barrels, engineered to fire specially designed ammunition at an extraordinary combined rate of 400,000 rounds per minute. This astonishing rate is nearly an order of magnitude higher than current close-in weapon systems (CIWS) such as China’s own Type 1130.
The result is what defense analysts have termed a “Bullet Curtain” — a wall of high-speed projectiles designed to intercept and destroy incoming missiles or drones in mid-air. Reports from the South China Morning Post suggest that this level of firepower could even neutralize hypersonic missiles traveling at speeds in excess of Mach 7. If true, this marks a major breakthrough in the race to defend warships from ultra-fast and maneuverable threats.
This prototype builds on the vision of Metal Storm Inc., the Australian company founded in the 1990s by inventor Mike O’Dwyer. That original system used electronically ignited, stacked projectiles in multiple barrels to achieve theoretical firing rates of up to one million rounds per minute. While O’Dwyer’s technology gained attention from both the U.S. Department of Defense and the Chinese military, technical hurdles led to the eventual bankruptcy of Metal Storm Inc. in 2012.
However, where the Western version failed to reach full deployment, China appears to have picked up the baton. Through Harbin First Machinery Group, a subsidiary of state defense giant NORINCO, China has revived and dramatically enhanced the Metal Storm concept.
According to Modern Weaponry, Chinese engineers have not only replicated but vastly improved upon O’Dwyer’s original vision. Their system reportedly surpasses the Australian prototype tenfold in both firing rate and tactical flexibility. It utilizes preloaded barrels and electronic ignition technology to coordinate an intricate barrage of munitions within microseconds.
The Chinese version is modular and can be mounted on land vehicles, naval ships, and potentially even airborne platforms. This modularity enables rapid deployment across different units of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), tailoring air defense coverage to specific operational environments.
Chief designer Yu Bin explained that the core innovation lies in the weapon’s “plane-to-point” interception methodology. Unlike traditional systems that attempt to directly strike incoming projectiles, this method floods the predicted path of a threat with dense firepower, thereby increasing the probability of a successful intercept.
This is especially critical against modern threats like coordinated drone swarms, which are designed to overwhelm point defense systems, and hypersonic weapons, which are too fast for most conventional interceptors.
A persistent problem for ultra-high-rate-of-fire weapons has been ammunition resupply. Traditional reloading is too slow to sustain continuous operations, especially when a million rounds can be expended in minutes. To overcome this, Chinese engineers have devised a containerized magazine system. Each container is a disposable unit of preloaded barrels. Once expended, the entire assembly is ejected and swapped for a new one. This reduces reload time to seconds rather than minutes and keeps the system combat-ready under sustained attack.
In terms of ammunition, the system is compatible with various 35mm shells, including the advanced AHEAD (Advanced Hit Efficiency And Destruction) programmable airburst rounds. These rounds can be programmed to explode at a specific point in space, releasing sub-projectiles to increase the chance of hitting small or fast targets such as drones or incoming munitions.
On the high seas, this system is expected to provide close-range air defense for destroyers, frigates, and other surface vessels operating in contested waters. With an effective range of 3 to 5 kilometers, it is particularly suited for engaging sea-skimming missiles and fast maneuvering threats that slip under the radar of longer-range missile systems.
This capability is especially relevant given the increasing use of low-altitude missile tactics intended to bypass traditional radar detection and missile defense envelopes. By creating a short-range “kill zone,” the Metal Storm system allows ships to engage multiple close-in threats simultaneously.
The Chinese military appears to be betting on the idea that missile-based interception systems, while effective, are unsustainable under saturation attacks. Each missile is costly and limited in number. In contrast, a gun-based system can fire continuously at a fraction of the cost.
According to the article in Modern Weaponry, China’s barrage weapon has already moved beyond the prototype stage and entered mass production. This transition marks a significant milestone, suggesting that the PLA is preparing for wide-scale deployment. It also sets the stage for potential exports, especially to countries seeking affordable alternatives to expensive missile defense systems.
Chinese defense analysts argue that the Metal Storm-style system provides not only better durability in prolonged engagements but also strategic value in deterring attacks. By making high-speed or unmanned strikes costlier and less likely to succeed, such a system could act as a powerful disincentive.
The unveiling of this weapon comes amid a broader shift in global military doctrine, where drones and hypersonic missiles are playing increasingly central roles. Nowhere is this shift more pronounced than in the Taiwan Strait, a flashpoint of growing strategic concern for both Beijing and Washington.
Taiwan has been rapidly expanding its drone capabilities as part of an asymmetric warfare strategy. The Ministry of National Defense in Taipei has pledged to produce 3,500 domestically manufactured drones, ranging from reconnaissance platforms to kamikaze UAVs equipped for precision strikes.
Meanwhile, the United States continues to bolster its presence in the region, deploying advanced drones such as the MQ-4C Triton and MQ-9B Reaper. These systems extend the surveillance and strike reach of U.S. forces, increasing the pressure on China’s air defense capabilities.
China’s new barrage weapon is a clear response to this evolving threat landscape. By fielding a system that can rapidly neutralize swarms of UAVs or fast-moving projectiles, the PLA is seeking to reinforce its naval assets against the kind of multidomain attacks that are becoming increasingly feasible.
More than just a technological marvel, the Metal Storm system represents a philosophical shift in how China approaches short-range defense. Traditional point-defense systems rely on interceptors and missiles to take out threats one by one. But as attacks grow more complex, featuring waves of drones or saturation missile barrages, such methods are being stretched to their limits.
The Chinese system, by contrast, adopts a “volume fire” doctrine. Rather than aiming for surgical strikes, it overwhelms the threat vector with sheer firepower. This mirrors the way in which air defense is evolving from selective engagement to area denial.
Moreover, the modular nature of the system allows it to be integrated not just into warships, but into ground-based mobile units and possibly even stationary installations like military bases or strategic infrastructure. This opens the door to a more unified, cross-platform air defense network.
If China successfully deploys this weapon at scale, it could reshape naval warfare in Asia and beyond. The prospect of facing a defensive system that can saturate the sky with hundreds of thousands of projectiles per minute may compel rival forces to rethink their offensive doctrines.
For now, many questions remain unanswered. Independent verification of the system’s effectiveness, especially against hypersonic missiles, is still lacking. And while mass production suggests readiness, actual operational deployment may still be months or years away.
Nonetheless, China’s unveiling of this Metal Storm-based defense system sends a clear signal: the future battlefield will not be dominated solely by stealth and speed but also by raw, overwhelming volume. In an age of drone swarms and hypersonic attacks, China is betting that firepower density, not just precision, will decide who survives the next war at sea.
