Additional deployment of the locally developed Hsiung Feng III (HF-3) “Brave Wind” surface-to-surface supersonic anti-ship missile on LaFayette-class Kang Ding (康定級)and Chi Yang Knox-class(濟陽級) frigates within the year is being considered in the face of China’s increasing buildup of its naval capabilities, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday.
The HF-3 supersonic surface-to-surface missile had been under research and development by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (中山科學研究院) for nearly two decades, and was made public in a military exercise in 2007.
While the ministry has not released any information on the capabilities of the HF-3 missile, military magazines surmise that the missile may reach speeds of between Mach 2.5 and Mach 3 at a range of between 150km and 200km.
Photo: Taipei Times
The magazines also report that the missile might be equipped with an active radar homing system and would be guided by the navy’s communication and observation systems in a wartime situation, and, as such, the missile could be considered a “fire-and-forget” type of missile.
According to an anonymous source who participated in the Hsiung Feng project, the HF-3 is more precise than either of its predecessors — the Hsiung Feng I and Hsiung Feng II — and is also superior in terms of its ability to penetrate the defensive capabilities of enemy ships.
Commenting on the tight lid the military has kept on the missile’s capabilities and specifications, the source said the difficulty in making supersonic missiles lay not in the principle, but in the missiles’ exterior form and calibrations.
Nations all over the world have classified such information, and Taiwan is no different, the source said.
The source added that the success of the Chungshan Institute in completing the missile was an important milestone for the nation.
The ministry said that the missile has already been deployed on the Cheng Kung-class(成功級) frigate, the navy’s Perry-class frigates, the locally researched and made Ching Chiang class(錦江級), and the Kuang Hua VI-class fast attack missile craft (光華六號).
The ministry is also considering deploying the HF-3 missiles on the two Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates that the ministry intends to purchase from the US next year, ministry officials said.
Meanwhile, the ministry has professed concern that China also appears interested in researching supersonic surface-to-surface missiles, adding that the success of such a venture was extremely important to the military balance in the Taiwan Strait.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. The world’s second-largest economy is beset by a debt crisis in the property sector, persistently low consumption and high unemployment among young people. Policymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall
CIVIL DEFENSE: More reservists in alternative service would help establish a sound civil defense system for use in wartime and during natural disasters, Kuma Academy’s CEO said While a total of 120,000 reservists are expected to be called up for alternative reserve drills this year, compared with the 6,505 drilled last year, the number has been revised to 58,000 due to a postponed training date, Deputy Minster of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said. In principle, the ministry still aims to call up 120,000 reservists for alternative reserve drills next year, he said, but the actual number would not be decided later until after this year’s evaluation. The increase follows a Legislative Yuan request that the Ministry of the Interior address low recruitment rates, which it made while reviewing
DETERRENCE: Along with US$500 million in military aid and up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees, the bill would allocate US$400 million to countering PRC influence The US House of Representatives on Friday approved an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025 that includes US$500 million in military aid for Taiwan. The legislation, which authorizes funding for the US Department of State, US foreign operations and related programs for next year, passed 212-200 in the Republican-led House. The bill stipulates that the US would provide no less than US$500 million in foreign military financing for Taiwan to enhance deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and offer Taipei up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for the same purpose. The funding would be made available under the US’ Foreign Military
WARNING: China has stepped up harassment of foreign vessels after its new regulation took effect last month, an official said, citing an incident in the Diaoyutai Islands The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday linked China’s seizure of a Taiwanese fishing vessel illegally operating in its territorial waters to Beijing’s new regulation authorizing the China Coast Guard to seize boats in waters it claims. Chinese officials boarded and then seized a Taiwanese fishing vessel operating near China’s coast close to Kinmen County late on Tuesday and took it to a Chinese port, the CGA said. The Penghu-registered squid fishing vessel Da Jin Man No. 88 (大進滿88) was boarded and seized by China Coast Guard east-northeast of Liaoluo Bay (料羅灣), 17.5 nautical miles (32.4km) from Taiwan’s restricted waters off Kinmen,