For the first time China has deployed up to 32 fourth-generation HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) to Woody Island in the Paracels, marking a significant military escalation by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in the South China Sea.
The deployment occurred at the same time as US president Barack Obama's attempt to promote solidarity among the leaders of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) by hosting a 15-16 February summit in Sunnylands, California.
In a 16 February report US sources confirmed to Fox News that China had deployed HQ-9 SAMs to Woody Island, which Imagesat International satellite imagery obtained by Fox News indicated were on the island on 14 February.
The missile deployment was also confirmed on 17 February by Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense.
The Fox report noted that satellite imagery suggested that up to eight launchers plus associated radar systems had been deployed. As each launcher carries four HQ-9 missiles, this could amount to an initial deployment of 32 such missiles.
The HQ-9s were seen on a recently expanded area at the north end of Woody Island, where there has been 'reclaiming' of an area next to the island's runway that increases the space available to station aircraft, missiles, and troops.
After protracted development, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) HQ-9 emerged in People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) units in 2003-04. The system's FD2000 export model is understood to have a range of 125 km, but versions used by the PLAAF may have a range of 150-200 km. There are reports that a 230 km-range version may be in development.
Early HQ-9s may use a phased-array radar plus track-via-missile (TVM) technology, long reported to have been obtained from a US Patriot SAM obtained via Israel or Germany.
However, in the later 1990s China obtained more advanced S-300 SAM technology from Russia's Almaz-Antey concern following China's purchase of 1,000 or more of several S-300 variants.
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