Hsiung Feng III / Xiongfeng III supersonic anti-ship missile

The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology Second Institute is engaged in follow-up research and development projects, including preparatory research and development of the Hsiung Feng III anti-ship and/or land attack cruise missile weapon system, concerning which few details have been made public. Xiongfeng-3 missile weapon system has been deployed in combat and Jinjiang-class warships. It is currently an important weapon for defense in Taiwan.

The Xiongfeng III missile is the third generation of anti-ship missile developed after the Xiongfeng-1 and Xiongfeng-2 missiles. The biggest difference between the male three missiles and the male and male two is the use of the ramjet engine as the endurance propulsion system, which greatly increases the flight speed. The development of the Xiongsan missile project began in 1994 with the development of key technologies. The first flight test was conducted in 1997.

In 2002, President Chen ordered that a budget of more than NT$20 billion be allotted to research and development on this advanced weapon. If US and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators do not create further obstacles, the Hsiung Feng III might serve as a tool for attacking Chinese aircraft carriers. All R&D test evaluations were completed in 2004. Subsequently, the Navy completed the operational evaluation in 2005.

When the missile was unveiled, it was revealed as having solid propellant booster rockets and a ramjet sustainer engine.

In January 2005 it was reported that Taiwan successfully test-fired the Hsiung Feng III supersonic anti-ship missile. Several Hsiung Feng III missiles were fired from southern Taiwan in the direction of the Pacific in December 2004 in the presence of Defense Minister Lee Jye. The missile has been under development for a decade and failed several early tests.

The Hsiung Feng III has a range of 300 kilometers (187.5 miles), enough to hit China, 160 kilometers (100 miles) across the Taiwan Strait. The new missile is believed to outperform a similar weapon in China's arsenal, the Russian-made Sunburn.

Taiwan first unveiled the Hsiung-feng 3 missiles to the public in a rare military parade on October 10, 2007, which was seen as a reminder to China that it has the weaponry to defend itself. Beijing has repeatedly warned of an invasion should Taiwan declare formal independence. In his New Year speech, Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian warned that China had increased the number of tactical ballistic missiles targeting Taiwan from 200 in 2000 to more than 1,300 by 2008.

In January 2008 Taiwan for the first time installed home-developed anti-ship missiles on a warship in a significant boost of its naval defence against rival China. The supersonic Hsiung-feng (Brave Wind) 3 missiles were seen on the Perry-class Cheng Kung frigate in the southern port of Tsoying. The United Daily News quoted commander-in-chief Admiral Wang Li-shen as saying that defence authorities will determine how to deploy the missiles and on which warships after testing is completed. It also cited an unnamed navy official as saying that the authorities hope to wrap up testing by the end of the year. Analysts say the Hsiung-feng 3 can be fitted with a variety of guidance systems and can function as a ship-to-ship, land-attack or anti-radar missile. With a range of at least 130 kilometers (80 miles), the Hsiung-feng 3 has been designed to counter the Russia-made SS-N-22 Sunburn bought by China.

A few hours before Chinese President Xi Jinping gave a speech 03 January 2018 emphasizing Taiwanese independence is destined for a �dead end,� the Taiwanese Navy unveiled its latest supersonic cruise missile, fired from a futuristic-looking corvette. The Taiwanese Navy posted a video on its Facebook account displaying a new anti-ship missile, dubbed Hsiung Feng-3, being launched from the Tuo Chiang corvette, according to a report published by Asia Times. The Hsiung Feng-3 features both solid and liquid fuel boosters and has a reported range of anywhere from 30 kilometers (18 miles) to 400 kilometers (250 miles), Asia Times notes, adding that the weapon is the latest variant of a missile family whose lineage in Taiwan traces back to the 1970s.

Range	greater than 100 km
Speed	supersonic
Guided control	inertial guidance + active radar seeker
Propulsion	main solid rocket + two booster rockets Liquid ramjet engine (cruising period)
Seeker	Active radar with ECCM function
Warhead	self-forging fragmented projectile

The Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missile is a more powerful anti-ship weapon than the Sunburn anti-ship missiles that China has bought from Russia. The Hsiungfeng III missile is a supersonic anti-ship missile. It is designed with an advanced integrated rocket ramjet engine, which greatly reduces the size and weight of the missile, and increases the loading capacity and flexibility of the loading platform.

The Xiongfeng III missile consists of three parts: the guiding section, the warhead section and the propulsion section. The outer shape is mainly a cylindrical projectile with four ramjet engine inlets and two circular tubular booster rockets. The missile adopts inertial guidance, and the terminal uses the active radar marker to return. The warhead uses a self-forging fragmentary projectile.

The guiding section of the Xiongfeng III is mainly composed of electronic modules. The related modules provide functions such as missile navigation, flight control, timing, search target and power required for cruise. The warhead section contains an optimized design enclosure, explosive fuze and associated blasting device. The propulsion section uses an integrated rocket ramjet engine to integrate the main booster solid-state pellets into the ramjet combustion chamber, using the main booster and the booster rocket to push the carrier to the Mach number and ignite the ramjet for supersonic speed cruise.

This type of missile has the ability to resist electric warfare and can effectively penetrate the defense network of enemy ships. Due to its excellent full-aerodynamic shape, structural strength and flight control design, the missile can approach the enemy ship at supersonic low altitude. The goal is to shorten the reaction time of the counter-weapons and to carry out the terminal shooting task with special trajectory; the warhead has excellent armor-piercing ability, which can cause strong damage benefit after hitting the target.

The Xiongfeng-3 missile can be deployed on sea vessels and land mobile launching platform, and according to the target and the command and control system, the missiles are respectively launched by each platform to saturate the target and destroy the target.