09 April 2019
Thailand flexes anti-ship missile capabilities in Andaman Sea with C-802A firing
by Ridzwan Rahmat
The Royal Thai Navy (RTN) conducted its first test-firing of the C-802A medium-range anti-ship missile on 5 April.
The weapon, which is an export version of the YJ-83 missile that is in service with the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), was fired from the Chao Phraya (Type 053 HT (H))-class frigate, HTMS Kraburi (457) in the Andaman Sea.
HTMS Kraburi firing the C-802A missile while in the Andaman Sea on 5 April. (Royal Thai Navy)
The missile was deployed against a simulated moving target, which has been built with radar reflective materials, about 100 km away from Kraburi at the time of firing. According to the RTN, the projectile attained a speed of Mach 0.94 before successfully hitting the target.
The C-802A missile has an overall length of 5.15 m excluding its booster, and a body diameter of 360 mm. It has a flight control surface span of 1.22 m and a launch weight of 800 kg. The missile, which can be deployed at up to Sea State 5, can carry warheads of up to 190 kg and has a top speed Mach 0.9.
The C-802A has a minimum hit range of 8.1 n miles (15 km) and a maximum range of 97.2 n miles (180 km). The sea-skimming missile cruises at a height of about 20 m above the waterline, but will descend to about 5 m as it enters the terminal phase of its mission.
The projectile employs an inertial navigation system (INS) and radar to home in on targets, the latter of which is deployed during the terminal phase. The missile that was fired from Kraburi was armed with a semi armour-piercing warhead.
Kraburi
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The Royal Thai Navy (RTN) conducted its first test-firing of the C-802A medium-range anti-ship missi...
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