The Wan Chien cruise missile was declared fully operational and ready for use by Aerospace Industrial Development Corp-built Indiginous Defense Fighters (IDFs) following a classified live-fire test and evaluation against sea targets on Thursday, a defense official said.
The missile, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, is submunitions-bearing, utilizes GPS and inertial navigation system guidance and has an effective range in excess of 200km, the official said on condition of anonymity.
The new missile will give the air force the ability to strike at China’s coastal military air bases and amphibious ship groups, the official said.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
After the institute completed the final operational test and evaluation in February last year, the military began limited field testing of the missile, the official said.
It subjected the missile this year to more rigorous tactical trials that simulated combat conditions and examined its functionality, reliability and damage potential, the official said.
Last week’s live-fire test and evaluation, utilizing two IDFs from Chihhang Air Base (志航) in Taitung, was completed in under 25 minutes, the official said.
One of the twin-seat fighter trainers fired one missile at surface targets in the seas to the southwest of Taiwan, while the other fighter and a Juiyuan drone monitored the exercise and transmitted real-time data to the institute’s Jioupeng Military Base (九鵬基地) in Pingtung County, the official said.
The air force implemented strict measures to ensure the secrecy of the evaluations, canceling one planned test after a fishing boat accidentally entered the restricted zone and rescheduling it multiple times to increase security, the official said.
The Wan Chien missile is now the longest-ranged weapon with a cluster munition warhead that the IDFs can carry, the official said.
All of its IDFs were upgraded under the Hsiang Sheng program to enable to them to carry the new missiles.
The IDFs could fire Wan Chien missiles from Taiwan’s median line in the Taiwan Strait to attack Chinese air bases, assembly areas, loading zones and military positions as far as China’s Fujian and Guandong provinces with neutralizing or destructive effect, the official said.
Computer simulations in previous Han Kuang exercises indicated that Wan Chien missiles are crucial weapons for the military’s multilayered deterrence doctrine, the official said.
EIGHT KILLED: Three of the four juvenile victims were children of the man suspected of setting the fire at the tire repair shop after a family dispute Four of the eight people killed in a fire in Hsinchu City on Wednesday night were children and the other four were adults who died while trying to rescue the children from the second floor of the burning building, the city’s Fire Bureau said yesterday. Fire Bureau First Corps commander Chang Chih-chih (張智智) told a news conference that the fire at Zheng Yi Tire Repair Shop on Dongda Road might have been intentionally set by the owner’s son, Chen Yen-hsiang (陳彥翔), who earlier had an argument with other family members. Chen allegedly bought gasoline and lit a fire near four motorcycles inside
FIFA World Cup host Qatar has corrected an online application form that listed Taiwan as part of China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. Following the ministry’s protest on Wednesday, “Taiwan” replaced “Taiwan, Province of China” on a dropdown menu on the Web site to apply for a Hayya Card, an identification card all World Cup spectators are required to obtain, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said. “We express our appreciation to the event organizers for their swift response in making the correction and safeguarding the rights of our nation’s fans,” she added. The card also serves as an entry visa for
FIVE QUESTIONED: Customers reported faulty kits after Safeway OA Supply Co allegedly imported poor-quality versions from China and sold them as US-made products The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday banned the sale and importation of Flowflex COVID-19 rapid test kits, after 2.37 million flawed kits, allegedly made in China, entered the Taiwanese market and were sold to 13 government agencies. According to regulations, the kits should be manufactured in factories in the US, but the importer allegedly imported poor-quality kits from China illegally and sold them as US-made products, FDA section chief Fu Ying-hsien (傅映先) said. The FDA ordered that all Flowflex COVID-19 Antigen Home Tests that were imported by Safeway OA Supply Co Ltd (大鑫資訊) be recalled and warned customers against buying or
NEW TRAVEL REGIME: The CECC advised people to stay put in between quarantine and self-disease prevention, but said that they could apply for a location change Inbound travelers who need to change locations for the four-day self-disease prevention period following their three-day quarantine must apply with their local government, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday. The “one person per household” principle would remain in place under the new “3+4” quarantine policy, which was implemented yesterday, the center said. More than 4,500 incoming travelers were expected yesterday, including more than 980 people who entered Taiwan in the early morning, said Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), the CECC’s acting spokesman and medical response division deputy head. Lo said many people had asked the CECC whether
RSS