The Republic of China (ROC) completed the second live firing of its Patriot Air and Missile Defense System at the Chiu Peng Test Range in the Southern region of Taiwan.
The Patriot test firing was conducted against a ballistic missile surrogate target and reinforced the ROC Army’s ability to conduct a live fire training exercise in a tactical environment. Initial indications are that the mission was a success. A detailed analysis of the flight test data is underway.
This is the second time Patriot has been fired in Southeast Asia. In June 2001, the ROC Army conducted two missions to test Patriot against a TBM (tactical ballistic missile) target and an air breathing threat. The missions were successful, with both targets destroyed.
Patriot, the foundation of the U.S. Army’s integrated air defense systems, is a long-range, all-altitude, all weather system fielded to defeat advanced threats including aircraft, tactical ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles.
