According to local media reports at the end of August, the Republic of China Navy (RoCN) has deployed the Brave Wind III supersonic anti-ship missile at a newly built naval facility in central Taichung.
According to reports from several Taiwanese news media, the Republic of China has established a missile base and deployed an unknown number of Xiongfeng-3 anti-ship missiles there to strengthen coastal defense. According to reports, these missiles are operated by members of the Marine Corps Sea Breeze shore-based anti-ship missile team.
Xiongfeng III is a supersonic missile developed and manufactured by the state-owned National Zhongshan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST). It carries a 120 kg armor-piercing fragment warhead, once it penetrates the hull, it can direct most of the explosion energy downwards to maximize damage.
The missile uses a configuration similar to Chinese ramjet-powered missiles such as YJ-12/CM-302 and Russia’s 3M80 Moskit and Kh-31. There is little information about the weapon, but it is reported to have a range of up to 220 nautical miles.
NCSIST has also developed a subsonic Xiongfeng II missile equipped with a 225 kg high-explosive semi-armor-piercing warhead. The improved Xiongfeng IIB has dual global positioning system/inertial navigation system guidance. The latter is believed to be capable of performing complex terminal flight operations.
These two types of missiles are now widely deployed in the surface fleet of the Republic of China. The Chenggong class and Kangding class frigates and Tuojiang class stealth frigates are currently equipped with these missiles.
NCSIST has also developed a road mobile missile launch vehicle for the Xiongfeng II and Xiongfeng III missiles, which may be a possible configuration of the missile deployed at the RoCN Taichung facility.
After Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen announced in February that it would enhance Taiwan’s weapon system capabilities, Taiwan has been increasing the production of many indigenous weapon systems, including other missiles, such as the Tiangong III (Tiangong III) surface-to-air missile. China’s defense is increasingly tough.
Xiao Wu
