Hsiung Feng III
Encyclopedia
The Hsiung Feng III (雄風三型, "Brave Wind III") is the third in the Hsiung Feng series of anti-ship missiles developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology
(CSIST) in Taiwan
. Very little is known about the HF-3, except that it is a Mach 2 class supersonic anti-ship missile
designed to target People's Liberation Army Navy
(PLAN) surface vessels, including its Sovremenny class destroyers. It has been speculated that the anti-ship variant is designed to outperform the Russia
n-made Sunburn anti-ship missile
possessed by the PLAN.
The HF-3 missile uses a rocket-ramjet propulsion system, with two side-by-side solid-propellant jettisonable strap-on rocket boosters for initial acceleration and a liquid-fueled ramjet (believed to be using JP-10 fuel) for sustained supersonic cruise. The missile features a wingless design with four strake intakes and four clipped delta control surfaces aft. The air intake design arrangement was reported to have been optimized for evasive maneuvering at terminal sea-skimming altitudes. The missile is designed to be capable of way-pointing and can be programmed to fly offset attack axes to saturate defenses. It is also capable of high-G lateral terminal "random weaving" maneuvers to evade close-in defenses.
The HF-3 missile uses an X-band monopulse planar array active radar seeker evolved from that utilized by the HF-2 anti-ship missile series, but with improved digital signal processing and data-handling capabilities that addresses the shorter reaction time requirements available to a supersonic anti-ship missile. The missile ECCM's includes resistance to range gate pull-off (RGPO), and the missile's maximum speed at low alttudes is reported to be in the range of Mach 2.0-2.3, with higher cruising speed at greater altitudes. The HF-3 uses a Self-Forging Fragment/SFF (i.e., Explosively-Formed Projectile/EFP) warhead reported to be in the 225kg weight class and designed to be triggered by a smart fuze that directs most of the explosive energy downward once it has detected that the missile is inside the target ship's hull.
However, contrary to the often reported maximum range of 300km, the initial block version of the HF-3 missile is said to have a maximum range of 70nm (approx. 130km) only, with another report from the online Defense News, that states the maximum range of the current block to be around 85nm. Its minimum effective range is reported to be around 16nm, due to the time and distance needed for the missile to transition to a stable, supersonic flight and attain the attack profile following target acquisition.
According to a Liberty Times article on May 10, 2005, the basic R&D phase of the HF-3 was mostly complete by that time, and the system was to under-go various countermeasure tests before entering service. According to the article, the main difficulty in designing the HF-3 involved violent trans-sonic vibrations damaging missile parts; advances in materials science allowed extensive miniaturization of the HF-3 system. It is expected to be deployed aboard the ROC Navy
's Lafayette/Kang Ding class
and Perry/Cheng Kung class frigates
, and may possibly be deployed on the Kwang Hwa VI class missile boats.
In August 2006, Janes subsequently reported that the R&D phase was complete - the first test was conducted in September 2006. The missile was officially revealed on Oct. 10, 2007 military parade.
Two version of HF-3 exist so far, a land based and a shipborne version that might be shorter in range in order to fit on board Taiwan's naval ships, as seen of 4 such HF-3 boxes (with 4 other HF-2 AShM) on board ROCN frigate PFG-1101 Cheng Kung as of 2006 and PFG-1105 was seen with 4 HF-3 boxes as of June 2009 with new launchers that can launch both HF-2 and HF-3. It is expected remaining ships of the class will be backfitted with HF-3 SSMs when they undergo their major overhaul. The HF-3 missile is expected to be deployed in the same mixed configuration (i.e., 4xHF-2s and 4xHF-3s) similar to that seen on the PFG-1101. This mixed (HF-2/HF-3) installation provides a unique and interesting capability, combining the low-signature characteristics of the subsonic, sea-skimming HF-2 with the high-speed penetration capability of the HF-3 missile. Also DDG-1802 Kidd-class) destroyers was spotted on December 2008, carrying 8 HF-3 SSMs in original Harpoon SSM position midship at Suao naval base. Ching Chiang class patrol ship(total 12 built) also are undergoing same upgrade to carry 2x2 HF-2/3 anti-ship missiles with the new launchers that can carry both type of anti-ship missiles.
On Sept 7th, 2009, it was revealed ROC Navy is designing a new 900 tons class missile craft that will carry 8 HF-3 SSM. Besides SWATH design, nothing else was revealed.
The United States government has voiced its concerns about the so-called "offensive potential" of some of Taiwan's indigenous missile programs, including HF-3, even though the HF-3 technically does not constitute an "offensive weapon", as it is purely an anti-ship weapon in its present form and is not inherently more capable of being used in an offensive strike mission than a Harpoon Block II missile which has littoral suppression capability and had already been sold to Taiwan.
HF-3 is currently in low volume production under project Chase Wind(追風), and is now approved and cleared to enter full serial production in 2011.
Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology
The Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology is the primary research and development institution of the Republic of China Ministry of National Defense's Armaments Bureau and has been active in the development of various weapons systems and dual use technology. CSIST is also involved in...
(CSIST) in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. Very little is known about the HF-3, except that it is a Mach 2 class supersonic anti-ship missile
Anti-ship missile
Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing...
designed to target People's Liberation Army Navy
People's Liberation Army Navy
The People's Liberation Army Navy is the naval branch of the People's Liberation Army , the military of the People's Republic of China. Until the early 1990s, the navy performed a subordinate role to the PLA Land Forces. Since then, it has undergone rapid modernisation...
(PLAN) surface vessels, including its Sovremenny class destroyers. It has been speculated that the anti-ship variant is designed to outperform the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n-made Sunburn anti-ship missile
SS-N-22
SS-N-22 Sunburn is the NATO reporting name for two unrelated Soviet anti-ship missiles. Although the missiles were very different, distinguishing between them is difficult because their ship-mounted launching containers were identical. Confusion was exacerbated by the Soviet practice of mixing...
possessed by the PLAN.
Development
The CSIST is believed to have started a ramjet test vehicle program in 1990s, and this project was later merged with the Hsiung Feng (anti-ship missile systems) program. Flight testing of the definitive HF-3 prototype started in 7/2001. Operational testing and evaluation was started in late-2004 and was completed by 7/2005, onboard the PFG-1101. According to Taiwan Defense Review, the supersonic HF-3 missile will dramatically reduce the reaction time available to the target. The typical reaction time against high-subsonic anti-ship (Mach 0.85) missile like the Harpoon or HF-2, when it is detected by the target vessel's onboard radar, is about 2 minutes. An HF-3 missile, flying at just above Mach 2 at comparable sea-skimming altitude during the attack phase could cover the same distance in less than 50 seconds.The HF-3 missile uses a rocket-ramjet propulsion system, with two side-by-side solid-propellant jettisonable strap-on rocket boosters for initial acceleration and a liquid-fueled ramjet (believed to be using JP-10 fuel) for sustained supersonic cruise. The missile features a wingless design with four strake intakes and four clipped delta control surfaces aft. The air intake design arrangement was reported to have been optimized for evasive maneuvering at terminal sea-skimming altitudes. The missile is designed to be capable of way-pointing and can be programmed to fly offset attack axes to saturate defenses. It is also capable of high-G lateral terminal "random weaving" maneuvers to evade close-in defenses.
The HF-3 missile uses an X-band monopulse planar array active radar seeker evolved from that utilized by the HF-2 anti-ship missile series, but with improved digital signal processing and data-handling capabilities that addresses the shorter reaction time requirements available to a supersonic anti-ship missile. The missile ECCM's includes resistance to range gate pull-off (RGPO), and the missile's maximum speed at low alttudes is reported to be in the range of Mach 2.0-2.3, with higher cruising speed at greater altitudes. The HF-3 uses a Self-Forging Fragment/SFF (i.e., Explosively-Formed Projectile/EFP) warhead reported to be in the 225kg weight class and designed to be triggered by a smart fuze that directs most of the explosive energy downward once it has detected that the missile is inside the target ship's hull.
However, contrary to the often reported maximum range of 300km, the initial block version of the HF-3 missile is said to have a maximum range of 70nm (approx. 130km) only, with another report from the online Defense News, that states the maximum range of the current block to be around 85nm. Its minimum effective range is reported to be around 16nm, due to the time and distance needed for the missile to transition to a stable, supersonic flight and attain the attack profile following target acquisition.
According to a Liberty Times article on May 10, 2005, the basic R&D phase of the HF-3 was mostly complete by that time, and the system was to under-go various countermeasure tests before entering service. According to the article, the main difficulty in designing the HF-3 involved violent trans-sonic vibrations damaging missile parts; advances in materials science allowed extensive miniaturization of the HF-3 system. It is expected to be deployed aboard the ROC Navy
Republic of China Navy
The Republic of China Navy is the maritime branch of the Armed forces of the Republic of China . The ROC Navy's primary mission is to defend ROC territories and the sea lanes that surround Taiwan against a blockade, attack, or possible invasion by forces of the People's Republic of China...
's Lafayette/Kang Ding class
La Fayette class frigate
The La Fayette class units are light multi-mission frigates built by DCN and operated by French Marine Nationale...
and Perry/Cheng Kung class frigates
Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate
The Oliver Hazard Perry class is a class of frigates named after the American Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, the hero of the naval Battle of Lake Erie...
, and may possibly be deployed on the Kwang Hwa VI class missile boats.
In August 2006, Janes subsequently reported that the R&D phase was complete - the first test was conducted in September 2006. The missile was officially revealed on Oct. 10, 2007 military parade.
Two version of HF-3 exist so far, a land based and a shipborne version that might be shorter in range in order to fit on board Taiwan's naval ships, as seen of 4 such HF-3 boxes (with 4 other HF-2 AShM) on board ROCN frigate PFG-1101 Cheng Kung as of 2006 and PFG-1105 was seen with 4 HF-3 boxes as of June 2009 with new launchers that can launch both HF-2 and HF-3. It is expected remaining ships of the class will be backfitted with HF-3 SSMs when they undergo their major overhaul. The HF-3 missile is expected to be deployed in the same mixed configuration (i.e., 4xHF-2s and 4xHF-3s) similar to that seen on the PFG-1101. This mixed (HF-2/HF-3) installation provides a unique and interesting capability, combining the low-signature characteristics of the subsonic, sea-skimming HF-2 with the high-speed penetration capability of the HF-3 missile. Also DDG-1802 Kidd-class) destroyers was spotted on December 2008, carrying 8 HF-3 SSMs in original Harpoon SSM position midship at Suao naval base. Ching Chiang class patrol ship(total 12 built) also are undergoing same upgrade to carry 2x2 HF-2/3 anti-ship missiles with the new launchers that can carry both type of anti-ship missiles.
On Sept 7th, 2009, it was revealed ROC Navy is designing a new 900 tons class missile craft that will carry 8 HF-3 SSM. Besides SWATH design, nothing else was revealed.
The United States government has voiced its concerns about the so-called "offensive potential" of some of Taiwan's indigenous missile programs, including HF-3, even though the HF-3 technically does not constitute an "offensive weapon", as it is purely an anti-ship weapon in its present form and is not inherently more capable of being used in an offensive strike mission than a Harpoon Block II missile which has littoral suppression capability and had already been sold to Taiwan.
HF-3 is currently in low volume production under project Chase Wind(追風), and is now approved and cleared to enter full serial production in 2011.
General characteristics
- Type: Anti-ship missileAnti-ship missileAnti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing...
- Range: 300 Kilometers
- Flight altitude: 125-250 Meters
- Power Plant: Rocket-RamjetRamjetA ramjet, sometimes referred to as a stovepipe jet, or an athodyd, is a form of airbreathing jet engine using the engine's forward motion to compress incoming air, without a rotary compressor. Ramjets cannot produce thrust at zero airspeed and thus cannot move an aircraft from a standstill...
- Top Speed: 2300 km/h
- Length: Approx. 6.096 m
- Diameter: .4572 m Missile Body Only
- Weight: 3,000-3,300 lbs
- Guidance: Inertial with terminal active (X-Band) radar homing
- Date Deployed: 12/2007 250 Units - approved for official low rate production as of 1/2008