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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Tests might include new missile
A member of the air force stands next to a mobile missile platform during drills at an undisclosed location on Aug. 18 last year. Photo: CNA
MILITARY ON ALERT: Chinese ships have been spotted near Taiwan’s maritime borders, and some have been identified as intelligence-gathering vessels, a source said
By Lo Tien-pin and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer
Missile tests the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology （CSIST） has scheduled for tomorrow and Tuesday at the missile base in Pingtung’s Jiupengwan （九鵬灣） could be a trial for the longer-range version of the Hsiung Feng II-E （雄風, “Brave Wind”） missile, which was developed under the project name Hsiung Sheng （雄昇）, sources speculated.
The CSIST on Thursday said that it has designated two peripheral alert zones for the tests. One covers a reverse L-shaped area that is 300km long from north to south, and 180km wide from east to west, extending out from Jiupengwan Base, reaching as far east as Green Island （綠島） and Orchid Island （Lanyu, 蘭嶼）, and stretching north into the ocean off Yilan County. It is to be used for lower-altitude tests, while another much smaller area within that is to be used for higher-altitude tests.
The Hsiung Sheng has an estimated range of 1,000km to 1,200km and could reach targets well inside China, the military has said.
It could be armed with high-explosive warheads to target military installations, or with cluster munitions to bombard enemy airfields and air bases, it has said.
A limited number of prototypes have been produced, and multiple live-fire tests must be conducted so that the CSIST can gather sufficient data to ensure that the missile is up to standard, before it can sign off on mass production, sources said.
Due to significant improvements in technology and many tests being conducted using computer simulations, on top of the increasing threat from China, the military is opting to produce missiles in limited batches for testing.
A Ministry of National Defense report to the Legislative Yuan said that the Hsiung Feng II and Hsiung Sheng missiles share a production line, and when the CSIST’s new plant begins production, the annual output of such missiles would increase from 81 to 131 annually.
However, the ministry did not say how many Hsiung Sheng missiles it expects to produce per year.
Separately, a source in the military yesterday said that Chinese ships had been sighted near Taiwan’s maritime borders, with some identified as intelligence-gathering vessels.
At times, there are up to nine “visits” from such ships in a day, and the military is concerned that the vessels might be intercepting electronic signals for analysis, the source said, asking to remain anonymous.
The military is closely monitoring the situation and has stepped up alert levels, they added.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
