Sky Horse

Sky Horse (Chinese: 天馬飛彈; pinyin: Tiānmǎ Fēidàn) is a ballistic missile developed secretly by Taiwan in the late 1970s, with a considerable number being produced.[1]

Development

Sky Horse was developed by the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), and was associated with the country's then-secret nuclear weapons program. With a range of 600-950 kilometres,[2] it would have been capable of striking pre-emptively at ports, airfields or missile bases on the Mainland in an arc from Shanghai to Zhanjiang.[3] The Sky Horse was to be the primary delivery vehicle for the Taiwanese nuclear weapons. The secondary delivery vehicle was planned to be the then in development AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuo.[4]

Project cancellation

The Sky Horse project was cancelled partly due to pressure from the USA, and partly so that the CSIST could concentrate on the Sky Bow missile.[5] There were calls to revive the program in response to China's missile threats during 1995 and 1996.[6] A senior Taiwanese official admitted that Taiwan was 'taken aback by China's moves', and there were fears that these could lead to an arms race.[7]

General characteristics
  • Length: > 20 metres
  • Propellant: Solid fuel[8]
  • Range: Estimated 600 – 950km
  • Guidance: Inertial
  • Launch platform: Land-based
  • Payload: ~ 350kg[9]
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References
  1. "Lien says Taiwan needs new long-range missile". Taipei Times. 2017-02-11. Retrieved 2017-02-17.
  2. Thad Cochran (1 June 1997). National Missile Defense and Prospects for U.S. - Russia Abm Treaty Accommodation: Hearing Before the Committee on Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate. DIANE Publishing. p. 141. ISBN 978-0-7881-8304-1.
  3. Gary Klintworth. "9. CHINESE DEFENSE MODERNIZATION AND THE SECURITY OF TAIWAN" (PDF). Rand.org. Retrieved 2017-08-09.
  4. ANDREA STRICKER, DAVID ALBRIGHT AND (2018). TAIWAN’S FORMER NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROGRAM (PDF). institute for science and international security. ISBN 1727337336. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
  5. Dinshaw Mistry (20 June 2013). Containing Missile Proliferation: Strategic Technology, Security Regimes, and International Cooperation in Arms Control. University of Washington Press. p. 97. ISBN 978-0-295-80252-7.
  6. Martin Edmonds; Michael Tsai (23 November 2004). Taiwan's Security and Air Power: Taiwan's Defense Against the Air Threat from Mainland China. Routledge. p. 101. ISBN 978-1-134-35053-7.
  7. "China's Missile Launches Threaten to Trigger an Arms Race in Asia - Page 2 - latimes". Articles.latimes.com. 1996-03-21. Retrieved 2017-02-17.
  8. Technologies underlying weapons of mass destruction. DIANE Publishing. p. 208. ISBN 978-1-4289-2110-8.
  9. "Design Characteristics of Taiwan's Ballistic Missiles" (PDF). Nti.org. Retrieved 2017-08-09.
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