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Taiwan fires over 100 missiles during China war drills

Taiwan fires 117 missiles during China military exercises in Taiwan Strait

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Kidd class destroyer launching missile.

Kidd class destroyer launching missile. (AP photo)

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- In the midst of the war games being held by China, Taiwan fired 117 missiles during two days of live-fire exercises of its own.

Ministry of National Defense (MND) Deputy Chief of Staff Li Chao-ming (李兆明) said at a press conference on Tuesday (July 30) that a total 117 missiles of 12 different types were fired over the course of two days of live-fire exercises from the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County, reported CNA. On Tuesday alone, 41 missiles of seven different types were fired, with an accuracy rate of 95.1 percent.

The shooting range of the drills extended 250 kilometers out to sea. According to units taking part in the exercises, the weapons employed were similar to those used at the annual Han Kuang Exercises (漢光演習).

The Han Kuang drill included the use of precision medium and long-range missile systems such as the Sky Bow I and Sky Bow II air defense missiles and Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles, reported CNA. Li said the exercises were divided into five training modes: ground-to-air, air-to-air, air-to-ship, ship-to-ship and air-to-ground, and included the use of fighter jets and warships.

Li said the number of missiles used this year exceeded that of last year's drill, but he declined to list the specific weapons deployed in the exercise. He said that Tuesday's 41 missiles included ground-to-air, ship-to-ship, and air-to-air missions.

On Monday (July 29), Taiwan’s Air Force dispatched two F-16 Fighter jets armed with AGM-84 Harpoon missiles to simulate an attack on a high-value maritime target off Taiwan’s southeast coast. Decommissioned landing ships were used as targets.

Meanwhile, in the Taiwan Strait, China’s navy began a week of military drills on Sunday (July 28) near Fujian's Dongshan Island and Zhejiang's Zhoushan Islands. The exercises will finish on Aug. 2 at 6 p.m., according to China’s Guangdong Maritime Bureau.