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.
[11] The system uses the improved Change Bai 2 (Long White 2) multifunction radar which entered service in the late 1990s.
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.
In 2023 development work on a new BMD missile, dubbed Strong Bow, with a maximum interception altitude of 70km was completed.
