Wendell_Minnick
Wendell Minnick 

The most powerful early warning radar (EWR) is based on Taiwan, and admired by everybody apart from China, writes defense expert Wendell Minnick in Defense News.

Wendell Minnick:

Taiwan’s early warning radar (EWR) on the island’s west coast has gained the respect of just about everyone in the region — except China. And for good reason, sources say. It is the most “powerful radar in the world,” said a Taiwan defense industry source.

“Even the Americans don’t have anything close,” he said.

Sources debate the potential power of the radar, based on Leshan Mountain near the city of Hsinchu, but all agree it is a multifaceted, ultra high frequency (UHF) radar capable of tracking air-breathing targets — including cruise missiles — and ballistic missiles at 3,000 kilometers, depending on the target.

“It’s more of an intelligence collection system than a ballistic missile defense warning system,” said one US defense industry source. “Taiwan can see almost all of China’s significant Air Force sorties and exercises from this radar.”

More in Defense News.

Wendell Minnick is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

China Weekly Hangout

The China Weekly Hangout will have open office hours coming Thursday, where you can drop in to discuss any issue, but where we want to focus on technical problems you have or we have had with hangouts. The development of this Google tool is going pretty fast, offering every week more new bells and whistles, but also with regularly new challenges.

You can join us on Thursday 28 November 10pm Beijing time, 3pm CET (Europe) or 9am EST (US/Canada). You can read our announcement here, or join the event by watching, commenting or actively joining at our event page.

Steve Barru, Miguel de Vinchi and Fons Tuinstra wrapped up on the China Weekly Hangout on October 3 the news on Shanghai’s Free Trade Zone, and end in a not-so positive mood about what this new zone is actually going to do.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Please follow and like us: