Ballistic Missile and Rocket Institutions in Taiwan, China

The security and stability of the Asia-Pacific region have become increasingly important for global peace and prosperity as a crisis around the Korean Peninsula, the Taiwan Strait or the South China Sea could escalate into an armed conflict with global implications. To address their security concerns, entities in the Asia-Pacific region are developing ballistic missiles.

A number of reports have been written about the ballistic missile capabilities of the DPRK and China. However, there are relatively fewer research papers looking into missile development in the Republic of Korea, Japan or Taiwan, China, each of which has developed or is working on the development of ballistic missiles or space launch vehicles. [1]

This report is the first in a series of reports on ballistic missile/space launch vehicle development in the Republic of Korea, Japan and Taiwan, China, with a focus on institutions that are capable of producing components that could be subject to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) [2] or the Hague Code of Conduct. [3]

Introduction

Official and authoritative information regarding the activities of Taiwan, China, related to ballistic missile development and its capabilities to produce ballistic missiles is limited. For the sake of simplicity, Taiwan, China is hereinafter referred to as "Taiwan".

It is reported that, in 1979, Taiwan secretly launched a modified US Nike Hercules surface-to-air missile to study the feasibility of converting such missiles into ballistic missiles. [4] Taiwan's first domestic ballistic missile, the Chieng Feng, made its public debut in a military parade in 1981 (Figure 1). It is generally believed that the Chieng Feng project was terminated in the 1980s without having been deployed along with a longerrange ballistic missile project codenamed Tien Ma. [5] The precise reasons for the termination of the projects remain unclear.

Chieng Feng solid propellant short-range ballistic missile

Figure 1. The Chieng Feng solid propellant, short-range ballistic missile. Image: CTS News [6]

Nowadays, Taiwanese press reports about Taiwan's current ballistic missile projects center around a short-range ballistic missile programme and a longer-range ballistic missile programme. However, Taiwan authority has never publicly acknowledged the existence of these programmes.

Drawing on publicly available open source information, such as company registration sites, official government information and Taiwanese media reports, this analysis identifies institutions in Taiwan relevant to the development of ballistic missiles and space launch vehicles, and briefly introduces the reports on the alleged ballistic missile projects.

Institutions

Three institutions in Taiwan relevant to the development of ballistic missiles/space launch vehicles have been identified:

The National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST);
TiSPACE; and
The Advanced Rocket Research Center (ARRC).

Among the three institutions, NCSIST, Taiwan's main defence technology developer and weapon manufacturer, is the most likely candidate for developing indigenous ballistic missiles, should Taiwan authorize the pursuit of such a capability.

TiSPACE and ARRC are small, civilian and private start-up companies that are currently developing sounding rockets. [7] The two companies have maintained a purely civilian profile and there is no evidence to suggest that they would compete with or work together with NCSIST if Taiwan were to decide to pursue a domestic ballistic missile programme. They are included in this report because the long-term goal of both TiSPACE and ARRC is to develop their own respective space launch vehicles.

National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology

Capabilities

NCSIST is capable of designing and manufacturing components or subsystems for ballistic missiles. Its products that could contribute to or facilitate the development of ballistic missiles include:

nosecone [8]
warhead [9]
guidance system [10]
solid propellant motor [11]
solid propellant [12]
flight attitude control system [14]
sounding rockets that, if flying a minimum energy trajectory as opposed to the highly lofted trajectory of sounding rockets, could exceed 300 km range [15]
target ballistic missiles that are converted from surface-to-air missiles

NCSIST also has its own research and production facilities for each of these components (Figure 2).

Filament-winding at an unknown location of NCSIST

Figure 2. Filament-winding at an unknown location of NCSIST. Filament-winding is a technique commonly used to produce advanced solid propellant motor casings. Image: NCSIST [13]

Overview

NCSIST currently has about 8,600 employees, including civilians and personnel in active military duty. Chiu Kuo-Cheng, the Chairman of the Board of NCSIST, is also the current Minister of Defence of Taiwan.

NCSIST is responsible for the development of a wide range of weapon systems and has nine compounds located throughout Taiwan as depicted below in Figure 3.

Locations of NCSIST compounds

Figure 3. Locations of NCSIST compounds. Image: NCSIST [16]

Facilities

Four NCSIST facilities related to rocket and missile programmes have been identified:

The NCSIST Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division (in Shinshin area)
The NCSIST Systems Manufacturing Centre (in Sanxia area)
The NCSIST Dashu compound (in Dashu area)
The Jiupeng Base (in Jiupeng area)

The NCSIST Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division (Figure 4) is located in the Shinshin area, [17] which is also home to NCSIST headquarters. [18] The Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division is in charge of research and development (R&D) on indigenous missile systems. This division develops large calibre (up to 227 mm) multiple rocket launchers and their ammunition, air-toair missiles, surface-to-air missiles and antiship missiles.

The Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division is also home to NCSIST headquarters

Figure 4. The Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division is also home to NCSIST headquarters. Coordinates: 24°50'56.72"N, 121°14'42.37"E. Image: Google Earth

The NCSIST Systems Manufacturing Centre (Figure 5 and 6) is situated in the Sanxia area in the city of New Taipei. [19] The Systems Manufacturing Centre is mainly responsible for the manufacturing and assembly of missile and rocket components and systems.

NCSIST Sytems Manufacturing Centre New Taipei City

Figure 5. NCSIST Systems Manufacturing Centre, New Taipei City Coordinates: 24°53'54.56"N, 121°21'12.22"E. Image: Google Earth

Inside the Tien Kung-3 surface-to-air missile production hall in NCSIST Systems Manufacturing Centre

Figure 6. Inside the Tien Kung-3 surface-to-air missile production hall in NCSIST Systems Manufacturing Centre, New Taipei City. Image: Hand-out photo from Presidential Office [21]

The NCSIST Dashu compound (Figure 7) is located in the Dashu area, Kaohsiung City. [20] The Dashu compound is responsible for the Image: Hand-out photo from Presidential Office [21] development and production of solid propellant propulsion systems for rockets and missiles. About 15 km southwest of the NCSIST Dashu compound, also in Kaohsiung City, is Factory 205 (Figure 8), which is under the Armaments Bureau of the Ministry of National Defense (MND). Factory 205 is mainly in charge of the production and maintenance of solid propellant motors. [22]

NCSIST Dashu compound-Kaohsiung City

Figure 7. NCSIST Dashu compound, Kaohsiung City. The on-going construction in this February 2021 image comports with media reports that part of Factory 205 will be moved into the Dashu compound. Coordinates: 22°42'3.15"N, 120°25'37.63"E. Image: Google Earth

Factory 205-Materiel Production Centre of the Armaments Bureau of the MND

Figure 8. Factory 205, Materiel Production Centre of the Armaments Bureau of the MND. Coordinates: 22°36'3.28"N,120°19'3.27"E. Image: Google Earth

Although it is not under the jurisdiction of NCSIST, Factory 205 maintains a close working relationship with NCSIST. Part of Factory 205 will be moved into the NCSIST Dashu compound after completion of new construction work that is targeted to be finished in 2022. [23]

The Jiupeng Base (Figure 9) attracts the most media attention because it is the main venue from which NCSIST and the armed forces of Taiwan launch large caliber multiple rocket launcher rounds, land-based anti-ship missiles, long-range surface-to-air missiles (Figure 10) and sounding rockets. The base is over six km long from north to south and about three km wide from west to east. About 300 employees work at this site. [24] The entire base is closely guarded. Prior to live artillery and missile firing activities of the Taiwanese armed forces and NCSIST, the Fisheries Agency of the Council of Agriculture issues notices to fishermen [25] (Figure 11) to prevent civilian vessels entering the test zone. However, it is often difficult to determine the type of missiles being launched, because civilians and journalists are only able to observe test launch activities from outside the base.

Jiupeng Base

Figure 9. Jiupeng Base. Coordinates: 22° 9'56.44"N, 120°52'48.23"E. Image: Google Earth

A Tien Kung-3 missile is launched on 15 July 2020 from Jiupeng Base

Figure 10. A Tien Kung-3 missile is launched on 15 July 2020 from Jiupeng Base during the annual Han Kuang Exercise in 2020. Image: SET News [27]

A notice to fishermen regarding a NCSIST weapon test on 23 June 2021

Figure 11. A notice to fishermen regarding a NCSIST weapon test on 23 June 2021, issued on 7 June 2021. Source: Fisheries Agency, Council of Agriculture [28]

For ballistic missile interception tests, the target missiles have to be fired from outside the Jiupeng Base. Most of the target missiles were previously fired from the Chenggong Township, 115 km northeast of the Jiuping test site (Figure 12). [26]

A target missile based on the Tien Kung-2 SAM fired on 5 June 2018 from Chenggong township

Figure 12. A target missile based on the Tien Kung-2 SAM fired on 5 June 2018 from Chenggong township, Taitung county. Image: Taitung Cable TV [29]

Alleged Ballistic Missile Projects

As described in the introduction, Taiwan's historical ballistic missile programmes have been shrouded in secrecy. Local media reports regarding the development of the alleged ballistic missile systems are highly speculative and often sensationalized. Based on a comprehensive review of Taiwanese press reports, the current allegations center around two possible ballistic missile programmes, namely a short-range ballistic missile and a longer-range ballistic missile. However, it is worth noting that NCSIST has never publicly acknowledged the existence of these two programmes.

Short-Range Ballistic Missiles

NCSIST has conducted multiple missile interception tests involving using ballistic missiles as targets. In those tests, the target missiles are converted from NCSIST’s Tien Kung-2 long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM). The use of the Tien Kung-2 SAM as target ballistic missiles demonstrated NCSIST’s ability to produce solid propellant, short-range ballistic missiles.

Several Taiwanese media outlets claimed that, in preparation for a possible military operation from mainland China during Taiwan's first direct presidential election in 1996, some ballistic missiles, [30] codenamed Tien Kung-2B or Tien Kung-2S, [31] converted by NCSIST from the Tien Kung-2 SAM, were deployed at an offshore island.

In May 2019, Taiwan's UpMedia reported that a project called "Tien-e" was initiated to upgrade the Tien Kung-2B ballistic missiles. The report claimed that the production of the Tien Kung-2B lasted from 1996 to 2006, and that the Tien-e upgrade aimed to improve the accuracy and increase the destructive power of the existing missiles. [32] Media reports in the early 2000s also mentioned a "Tien Chi" missile, which is allegedly a Tien Kung-2- based ballistic missile with a range of only 100 km. [33] The name "Tien Chi" has not appeared in Taiwanese media since then.

In the annual budget plans for 2020, the Taiwan MND awarded NCSIST a contract for "ground-to-ground missile life-extension and inspection". [34] This contract was interpreted by some Taiwanese media as being for lifeextension of the ballistic missiles based on the Tien Kung SAM. [35] However, In the annual budget plans for 2019 and 2021, a reference to the "Hsiung Sheng missile life-extension and inspection" was used instead. [36] Judging by the naming convention of the Taiwanese armed forces, Hsiung Sheng (雄昇) is more likely to be a codename for the land-attack cruise missile based on the Hsiung Feng (雄風) anti-ship cruise missile, rather than a ballistic missile based on the Tien Kung (天弓) SAM.

There are a few reports that NCSIST has plans to develop for the RT-2000 multiple rocket launchers (1) a short-range ballistic missile [37] and (2) a new, guided rocket with a range of at least 100 km. [38] Reportedly, the new rocket for the RT-2000 multiple rocket launcher is based on a scaled down design of the airframe of the Tien Kung SAM. [39] However, a later report by a different media outlet states that, in light of the US arms sale to Taiwan of 64 Army Tactical Missile Systems M57 Unitary Missiles, [40] the short-range ballistic missile project had been cancelled and NCSIST was now focusing on increasing the accuracy of the RT-2000 multiple rocket launcher. [41]

Pursuant to a request by the National Space Organization of the National Applied Research Laboratories, NCSIST also produced sounding rockets by adding a 500 mm diameter solid propellant rocket booster to the Tien Kung SAM rocket motor. [42] A total of ten sounding rockets were launched between 1998 and 2014 by the National Space Organization and NCSIST. [43] These sounding rockets are unguided, spin-stabilized rockets used for scientific research purposes. [44] There have been no indications that these sounding rockets will play any land-attack role. However, NCSIST’s sounding rockets are sometimes mistaken by Taiwanese media as land-attack missiles.

Longer-Range Ballistic Missile

During a review conference convened by the Legislative Yuan (Taiwan's legislative body) on 25 March 2021, NCSIST Vice President Leng Jin-xu stated that Taiwan currently had deployed one indigenous long-range, groundbased weapon system (most likely the Hsiung Feng-2E cruise missile [45]) to attack land targets and that there were three other longrange land attack weapon systems under research and development. [46] What the latter three projects are remains unclear. [47] The possibility that one of the three on-going long range land attack weapons under development is a ballistic missile cannot be ruled out.

News reports on longer-range ballistic programmes are more speculative than the alleged ballistic missiles based on the Tien Kung SAMs. It is reported by UpMedia that the MND, pursuant to a request by the National Space Organization, awarded NCSIST a contract to develop a small space launch vehicle capable of putting a 50 to 200 kg payload into a 500 km high sun synchronized orbit. The project codename is said to be Kirin (or Qilin). [48]

In February 2019, UpMedia reported that a colonel working for NCSIST left a paper document about the Kirin project in the basket of a shared bike. The document was later returned to NCSIST. [49] NCSIST issued a press release, stating that the Kirin project was part of its basic engineering and technology development work, but did not reveal the nature of the Kirin project. [50]

It was subsequently reported that the Kirin project had been renamed Qilai as a consequence of the document loss incident. Media reports also claimed that a military project, called Chi Feng, based on technologies of the Qilai, was created in 2021 with the aim of developing a 1,000 km range ballistic missile. [51]

However, it is worth noting that NCSIST has repeatedly dismissed news reports of indegenious offensive missile development, especially those of UpMedia. [52]