Hsiung Feng III

A Taiwanese supersonic anti-ship cruise missile, nicknamed the 'Carrier Killer,' developed by NCSIST to deter amphibious invasion by targeting Chinese surface combatants. It is deployed on Taiwanese warships, coastal batteries and the Kuang Hua VI missile boats.

In service since 2007 · 1 operator countries

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02

150

km range

2.5

Mach

180

kg warhead

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

National export licensing

Subject to Taiwan export-control approval; verify eligibility with the manufacturer.

Channel: Direct commercial / G2G

Fielded & proven

Limited · 1 operator

In service since 2007. Status: active.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.

Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Performance

Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.

Max speed (Mach) Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.: 2.5 Mach

Stronger than 50% of missiles
Range Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.: 150 km

Stronger than 44% of missiles

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Warhead Warhead mass. Heavier generally means larger effect radius, at the cost of range.: 180 kg

Stronger than 49% of missiles
Warhead type Blast-fragmentation, shaped charge (HEAT), penetrator, thermobaric or nuclear-capable.: High-explosive semi-armor-piercing
Guidance How the weapon finds its target: inertial, GPS/GLONASS, active/semi-active radar, infrared, laser, TV, wire.: Inertial navigation, Active radar terminal homing

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.: 6.1 m

Propulsion

Engine, power and fuel.

Propulsion type Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…: Ramjet with solid rocket booster

Program

Cost, production scale and operators.

Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.: 1

Stronger than 13% of missiles

Specifications compiled from public National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.

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