Sky Bow
The Sky Bow, or Tien Kung (Chinese: 天弓; pinyin: Tiān gōng), are a series of surface-to-air anti-ballistic missile and anti-aircraft defense systems developed by Taiwan.
[1] Research into what became the Sky Bow project began after the United States ended bilateral relations with the Republic of China in 1979.
[2] The development of the Sky Bow 1 (Tien Kung 1) missile system was started in 1981 by the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (then CSIST).
CSIST also developed a large multifunction, phased-array radar known as Chang Bai (long white) for use with the Tien Kung (Sky Bow) series surface-to-air missile systems with 120 degree coverage and a maximum range of 450 km.
[4][5] The Chang Bai radar system is reported to be based on the Lockheed Martin's ADAR-HP (Air Defense Array Radar-High Power) design and operates in the 2–4 GHz range (S-band).
[4] The system performance specifications remain classified, but its effective detection range against a 1m2 target is reported to be around 400 km.
The development of Sky Bow 2 started around 1986, this added a tandem boost motor and an active radar homing terminal seeker.
[7] The Sky Bow I (TK-1) (天弓一, Tien Kung I) is a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST) in Taiwan.
Originally a TK-1 with a first-stage booster, the system became a slightly-enlarged modified version of the Sky Bow I (TK-1) missile using an X-Band active-radar seeker,[11] with a longer range and limited anti-missile capability.
The TK-2 active radar seeker operates in the 28–32 GHz frequency range and provides reasonably good performance against air-breathing targets of typical aircraft size.
Internal components were replaced with miniaturized parts to take advantage of modern electronics technologies, yielding extra room within the missile for more fuel and a more powerful main rocket motor.
[16] According to the report from Taiwan Defense Review, depending on its payload and launch parameters, the rocket can be converted to attain a horizontal maximum range of up to 500 km.
CSIST was reported to had sought the release of the associated traveling-wave tube (TWT) transmitter of the Ka-band active radar seeker technology.
The new radar enhances the survivability and operational flexibility of the TK2/3 missile systems by allowing a TK surface-air-missile battery to be deployed rapidly to a previously unprepared site.
[26] In 2019 Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen ordered the NCSIST to accelerate mass production of the TK-3 in response to increasing Chinese military power and bellicosity.
[30] The ship-based version has a folding tail to fit in Mark 41 vertical launch systems and is planned to be deployed on the ROCN's next-generation general-purpose frigates and air defense destroyers as well as possibly retrofitted onto existing vessels.
[3] In 2023 development work on a new BMD missile, dubbed Strong Bow, with a maximum interception altitude of 70km was completed.
