Hongniao missile
Encyclopedia
HN missiles are a series of little known turbofan powered Chinese land attack cruise missile, which is based on the variants of the Russian Kh-SD/65.
, the inherit problem of this turbojet powered Changfeng missile
meant that the size and weight of the missile were too large to be carried by aerial platforms in Chinese inventory and the range of the missile was also not long enough. A turbofan
powered version was needed, but due to the limitation of the Chinese R&D and industrial capability at the time, this could not be achieved immediately. As a result, China decided to take a two-step approach, first to have the turbojet powered Changfeng missile to meet the immediate need, and then the turbofan powered version like BGM-109 Tomahawk
would be developed for deployment on the aerial platforms while China is building up its industrial capability.
The breakup of former-USSR provided a great boost for the Chinese effort in developing its own turbofan powered cruise missiles. According to US intelligence, by the end of 1992, China had successfully recruited more than fifteen hundred former Soviet missile scientists to work in China, and around twenty percent, roughly totaling around three hundred, were assigned to work in Shanghai
to specifically aid the Chinese cruise missile development. Although many Chinese sources agreed with the US intelligence, they disagree on the contributions of Russian/Soviet scientists: instead of helping China to develop a particular kind missile, Russian/Soviet expertise was first utilized on a much broader strategic scale in helping China to build the necessary industrial capability needed to indigenously develop its own missiles in the future. These Chinese claims have been correlated by the facts that despite a complete set of Raduga Kh-55
production facility is transferred to China from Russia in 1995, and the Russian public announcement of helping China in developing cruise missiles at 1996 Paris Airshow, the first Chinese turbofan powered land attack cruise missile did not enter service until somewhere in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, well after the turbojet powered CF series land attack cruise missiles
had already entered Chinese service.
In addition to the transfer of a complete Kh-55 production facility from Russia to China around 1995, China received another great boost in its land attack cruise missile development in that between 1999 to 2001, half-a-dozen Kh-55 missiles were delivered to China from Ukraine (a dozen were transferred to Iran from Ukraine at the same time), and these supposedly to be destroyed samples under US-funded disarmament program have provided valuable experience for China in its effort in developing its own versions, including both the HN series and DH-10
. HN series land cruise attack missile is developed by New New Electrical Factory (新新电机厂) in Shanghai
, one of the three Chinese land attack cruise missile developers (the other two being Sanjiang Space Estate (三江航天集团), the developer of Changfeng missile
, and the 3rd Design Academy of the Aerospace Ministry in Beijing
, later reorganized as CHEMTA, short for China Sea Eagle Electromechanical Technology Academy, 中国海鹰机电技术研究院).
, which is successfully achieved, but the claims of HN-1 being able to be carried by Xian JH-7
has yet to be verified. It is reported that HN-1 is consisted of two versions, the air-launched HN-1A and ground launched HN-1B. Test flight of HN-1 was successfully completed in June 1999, and the missile is believed to have entered Chinese service in the same year.
, another Chinese land attack cruise missile with range between two thousand to three thousand kilometers based on Kh-55, the estimation of the range of HN-3 between one thousand and two thousand kilometers is more probable. Although some sources outside China estimates the range of HN-3 is somewhere between fourteen hundred and eighteen hundred kilometers, most Chinese sources claim the range of HN-3 is around twelve hundred kilometers. The most common beliefs are that the HN-3 has a range of about 3,000 km http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2002/11/21/13404.shtmlhttp://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/china/lacm.htm. HN-3 reportedly entered Chinese service in 2002, and a ground launched version is also reportedly developed.
satellite guidance. It has an accuracy of up to 1-3 meters and a range of 4000 km.
Development
Although China was satisfied with the performance of its own Changfeng series land attack cruise missileChangfeng missile
The Chang Feng, or "Long Wind" is a turbojet powered land-attack cruise missile, indigenously developed by China. It is the first domestically produced Chinese land-attack cruise missile, and it is the first land-attack cruise missile to enter service with the People's Liberation Army...
, the inherit problem of this turbojet powered Changfeng missile
Changfeng missile
The Chang Feng, or "Long Wind" is a turbojet powered land-attack cruise missile, indigenously developed by China. It is the first domestically produced Chinese land-attack cruise missile, and it is the first land-attack cruise missile to enter service with the People's Liberation Army...
meant that the size and weight of the missile were too large to be carried by aerial platforms in Chinese inventory and the range of the missile was also not long enough. A turbofan
Turbofan
The turbofan is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used for aircraft propulsion. A turbofan combines two types of engines, the turbo portion which is a conventional gas turbine engine, and the fan, a propeller-like ducted fan...
powered version was needed, but due to the limitation of the Chinese R&D and industrial capability at the time, this could not be achieved immediately. As a result, China decided to take a two-step approach, first to have the turbojet powered Changfeng missile to meet the immediate need, and then the turbofan powered version like BGM-109 Tomahawk
BGM-109 Tomahawk
The Tomahawk is a long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile. Introduced by General Dynamics in the 1970s, it was designed as a medium- to long-range, low-altitude missile that could be launched from a surface platform. It has been improved several times and, by way of corporate divestitures...
would be developed for deployment on the aerial platforms while China is building up its industrial capability.
The breakup of former-USSR provided a great boost for the Chinese effort in developing its own turbofan powered cruise missiles. According to US intelligence, by the end of 1992, China had successfully recruited more than fifteen hundred former Soviet missile scientists to work in China, and around twenty percent, roughly totaling around three hundred, were assigned to work in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
to specifically aid the Chinese cruise missile development. Although many Chinese sources agreed with the US intelligence, they disagree on the contributions of Russian/Soviet scientists: instead of helping China to develop a particular kind missile, Russian/Soviet expertise was first utilized on a much broader strategic scale in helping China to build the necessary industrial capability needed to indigenously develop its own missiles in the future. These Chinese claims have been correlated by the facts that despite a complete set of Raduga Kh-55
Raduga Kh-55
The Kh-55 is a Soviet/Russian air-launched cruise missile, designed by MKB Raduga. It has a range of up to and can carry conventional or nuclear warheads...
production facility is transferred to China from Russia in 1995, and the Russian public announcement of helping China in developing cruise missiles at 1996 Paris Airshow, the first Chinese turbofan powered land attack cruise missile did not enter service until somewhere in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, well after the turbojet powered CF series land attack cruise missiles
Changfeng missile
The Chang Feng, or "Long Wind" is a turbojet powered land-attack cruise missile, indigenously developed by China. It is the first domestically produced Chinese land-attack cruise missile, and it is the first land-attack cruise missile to enter service with the People's Liberation Army...
had already entered Chinese service.
In addition to the transfer of a complete Kh-55 production facility from Russia to China around 1995, China received another great boost in its land attack cruise missile development in that between 1999 to 2001, half-a-dozen Kh-55 missiles were delivered to China from Ukraine (a dozen were transferred to Iran from Ukraine at the same time), and these supposedly to be destroyed samples under US-funded disarmament program have provided valuable experience for China in its effort in developing its own versions, including both the HN series and DH-10
DH-10
The DongHai 10 is a cruise missile developed in the People's Republic of China by the Third Academy by CASIC.According to Janes, the DH-10 is a second-generation land-attack cruise missile , integrated inertial navigation system, GPS, terrain contour mapping system, and digital scene-matching...
. HN series land cruise attack missile is developed by New New Electrical Factory (新新电机厂) in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, one of the three Chinese land attack cruise missile developers (the other two being Sanjiang Space Estate (三江航天集团), the developer of Changfeng missile
Changfeng missile
The Chang Feng, or "Long Wind" is a turbojet powered land-attack cruise missile, indigenously developed by China. It is the first domestically produced Chinese land-attack cruise missile, and it is the first land-attack cruise missile to enter service with the People's Liberation Army...
, and the 3rd Design Academy of the Aerospace Ministry in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, later reorganized as CHEMTA, short for China Sea Eagle Electromechanical Technology Academy, 中国海鹰机电技术研究院).
HN-1
HN-1 is reportedly the Chinese development of the now reportedly cancelled Russian Kh-SD land attack cruise missile. The biggest difference between HN-1 and its origin Kh-SD missile is that a turbofan engine is adapted for HN-1, replacing the turbojet engine of Kh-SD. The Chinese turbofan engine is reportedly based on the R95-300 turbofan engine that powers Kh-55, resulting in significant reduction in size and weight of HN-1 in comparison to Kh-SD, while performance such as the maximum range remains the same as that of Kh-SD. Like Kh-SD, the maximum range is 600 km.http://www.missilethreat.com/cruise/id.53/cruise_detail.asphttp://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/china/lacm.htm The top priority of HN-1 development is to have a land attack cruise missile compact enough to be carried by Xian H-6Xian H-6
The Xian H-6 is a license-built version of the Soviet Tupolev Tu-16 twin-engine jet bomber, built for the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force....
, which is successfully achieved, but the claims of HN-1 being able to be carried by Xian JH-7
Xian JH-7
The Xian JH-7 ; NATO reporting name Flounder), also known as the FBC-1 Flying Leopard, is a tandem two-seat, twin-engine fighter-bomber in service with the People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force , and the People's Liberation Army Air Force...
has yet to be verified. It is reported that HN-1 is consisted of two versions, the air-launched HN-1A and ground launched HN-1B. Test flight of HN-1 was successfully completed in June 1999, and the missile is believed to have entered Chinese service in the same year.
HN-2
HN-2 is reportedly the Chinese development of the Russian Kh-65 land attack cruise missile. Just as in the case of HN-1 and Kh-SD, the biggest difference between HN-2 and its origin Kh-65 missile also is that a turbofan engine is adapted for HN-1, replacing the turbojet engine of Kh-SD. The Chinese turbofan engine is reportedly having the same origin as of earlier HN-1, based on the same R95-300 turbofan engine that powers Kh-55, resulting in significant reduction in size and weight of HN-2 in comparison to Kh-65, while performance such as the maximum range remains the same as that of Kh-65. Another improvement of HN-2 is that a high altitude approach mode is added. The maximum range is about 1,800 km http://www.missilethreat.com/cruise/id.54/cruise_detail.asphttp://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/china/lacm.htm. HN-2 reported entered Chinese service in 2001.HN-3
HN-3 is the enlarged version of the Russian Kh-65 land attack cruise missile, and many Chinese sources have claimed that by this time, Chinese capability was matured enough to develop this project on its own, after receiving significant help from Russia in the development of earlier two missiles (HN-1 & HN-2). HN-3 is still powered by the same turbofan engine that powers HN-1 and HN-2 missiles, with the same origin, the R95-300 turbofan engine that powers Kh-55. HN-3 actually increased in size and weight in comparison to earlier HN-1 and HN-2 missiles, and some sources have claimed that it is even larger than the Kh-65. The range of HN-3 is subject to debate, claims vary on the range, from greater than a thousand kilometers to nearly three thousand kilometers. However, DH-10DH-10
The DongHai 10 is a cruise missile developed in the People's Republic of China by the Third Academy by CASIC.According to Janes, the DH-10 is a second-generation land-attack cruise missile , integrated inertial navigation system, GPS, terrain contour mapping system, and digital scene-matching...
, another Chinese land attack cruise missile with range between two thousand to three thousand kilometers based on Kh-55, the estimation of the range of HN-3 between one thousand and two thousand kilometers is more probable. Although some sources outside China estimates the range of HN-3 is somewhere between fourteen hundred and eighteen hundred kilometers, most Chinese sources claim the range of HN-3 is around twelve hundred kilometers. The most common beliefs are that the HN-3 has a range of about 3,000 km http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2002/11/21/13404.shtmlhttp://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/china/lacm.htm. HN-3 reportedly entered Chinese service in 2002, and a ground launched version is also reportedly developed.
HN-2000
A stealthy, supersonic cruise/anti-ship missile has been reported under development. It is reported to be equipped with a millimeter wave radar, infrared image mapping, synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and BeidouBeidou navigation system
The BeiDou Navigation System or BeiDou Navigation Satellite System is a project by China to develop an independent satellite navigation system...
satellite guidance. It has an accuracy of up to 1-3 meters and a range of 4000 km.