Photos of the Day: The much talked about ROC Carrier-Killer-Missile

Taiwan Points to Own Carrier-Killer Missile

Aug 11, 2011

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=defense&id=news/awx/2011/08/11/awx_08_11_2011_p0-357893.xml&headline=Taiwan%20Points%20to%20Own%20Carrier-Killer%20Missile


By Leithen Francis leithen_francis@aviationweek.com
Taipei

Taiwan’s ministry of national defense (MND) caused a sensation during the preview of the 2011 Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition by displaying a billboard depicting an aircraft carrier, similar to China’s ex-Varyag, being blown up by a Taiwanese Hsiung Feng III anti-ship cruise missile.

It is very unusual for the Taiwanese to so blatantly highlight that its weapons are aimed at China, says one industry analyst, adding that the decision to use a Varyag image in the advertisement may have been an unintended mistake.

The Hsiung Feng III, which was developed by MND’s Chung Shan International Institute of Science and Technology, has only been shown in a public forum twice before, says an official from the institute speaking to Aviation Week on the sidelines of the show.

The missile is designed to penetrate an aircraft carrier and explode inside to cause maximum damage. The institute claims it only takes one or two of these missiles to sink an aircraft carrier.

Taiwan unveiled the missile to the general public the same day that China’s first aircraft carrier, the once-Soviet Varyag, set sale Aug. 10.

Taiwan’s defenses are focused on the island’s west coast, facing the Taiwan Strait and China, but the concern is that an aircraft carrier could be used to attack Taiwan’s east coast.