Wikipedia

TL-10

TheYJ-9(Chinese:Ưng kích -9;pinyin:yingji-7;lit.'Eagle Strike 9') is aChineselightweightanti-ship missilemanufactured byHongdu Aviation Industry Corporation.[1][2][3]The export version of YJ-9 is calledTL-10(Chinese:Thiên long -10;lit.'Sky Dragon-10')anti-ship missileby Hongdu, orFL-8(lit.'Flying Dragon-8') byChina National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation(CATIC). The missile is also calledKowsarby Iran'sAerospace Industries Organization(AIO).[2]

TL-10
Typeanti-ship/air-to-surfacemissiles
Place of originChina
Service history
In serviceprior to 2006 – present
Used byChina
Production history
ManufacturerHongdu Aviation Industry Corporation
Producedprior to 2006
Specifications
Mass105 kg
Length2.5 meter
Diameter0.18 meter
Wingspan0.568 meter
Warhead30 kg warhead
Detonation
mechanism
Semi-armor-piercing
Enginerocketmotor
Propellantsolid fuel
Operational
range
≈20 km
Maximum speed≈Mach0.85
Guidance
system
ARH/ ImIRIR/ TV
Launch
platform
Air & surface

Development

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The TL-10 was unveiled in the 2004Zhuhai Airshow.[2][4]

Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporationbegan the development of TL-10 andTL-6missiles in the mid-1990s, and conducted test fires in the same period. According to a representative of Hongdu in 2004, the TL-6 and TL-10 programs were purely designed for export, and no missile would be inducted into the People's Liberation Army.[2]Three missile variants were showcased in 2004: the air-to-surface KJ/TL-10B, the surface-to-surface JJ/TL-10A, and the surface-to-surface JJ/TL-6B. TL-6B also had a radar-guided version under development.[2]

The TL-10 andC-701have similar roles, dimensions, and performance and are both part of Iran'sKowsarprogram.Jane's Defence Weeklysuspected that two companies in China had competing designs intended for Iran's missile program.[2]

Design

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TL-10 is specifically designed to engage boats displacing 500 tons or less, and when launched, the missile will first climb to enable the seeker to acquire targets, and then immediately descend down tosea-skimmingcruise altitude during its flight. Like the anti-ship version of theC-701,TL-10 is also armed with a television seeker that is interchangeable withTL-6.However, unlike theC-701guidance has an additional command option which enables the operator to alter the targets, TL-10 is a purelyfire-and-forgetweapon.Westernsources have claimed that the Iranian anti-ship missileKowsarwhich is manufactured by theIran Aviation Industries Organizationis based on TL-10 while theNasris based on the TL-6.

At the Zhuhai airshow in 2006, the manufacturer revealed the plan already in development to install this missile on various platforms including aircraft, surface ships, and land vehicles. However, like most light anti-ship missiles in the world, it is certain that this missile would not be launched fromsubmarines,as the manufacturer has confirmed. The version that has been successfully completed is the ship-to-ship version, hence the designationJJ/TL-10at the 6th Zhuhai airshow in 2006, where JJ stands for Jian Jian ( hạm hạm ), meaningShip (to) Ship.Another version developed wasKJ/TL-10,the air-launched version, with KJ stands for Kong Jian ( không hạm ), meaningAir (to) ship.

FL-8

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FL-8 (FL = Fei Long / Feilong, or phi long in Chinese, meaning Flying Dragon) is the cheaper coastal defense version of TL-10. Following the tradition ofSilkworm missile,a land-based version with the lowest requirement is also developed for this missile: as the missile is stored in a controlled environment in a warehouse on land, the salinity, temperature and relative humidity requirements for the missile itself are greatly reduced. Because it is designed and deployed on land, the associate C4I systems can be located separately: the distributed system prevents electromagnetic interference, and if the C4I system is attacked, the distributed nature of the FL-8 would greatly reduce casualties and damage.

Kowsar

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Kowsar(or Kosar) is the Iranian version of TL-10.Noor (missile),the Iranian version of C-802, was previously often widely but erroneously credited by many as the missile that had hit IsraelicorvetteINSHanitin the2006 Lebanon WarbyHezbollah,while post incident analysis has suggested that the missiles used was actually much smaller Kowsar instead.

TL-1

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A new version of TL-10 appeared made its public debut at the 7thZhuhai Airshowheld at the end of 2008, together with its larger cousin TL-2. Developed by Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation, the same manufacturer of TL-10, the new missile is designated as TL-1, and appears almost identical to TL-10. Not much information on TL-1 was released in detail at the air show, and based on scattered technical information published in China, it has been suggested that TL-1 is an upgraded TL-10 with a data link added so that in addition to the original fire-and-forget capability, the only capability present on TL-10, there is an extra capability present on TL-1: operators can select to attack a different target other than the original one, if a greater threat has been identified after launching TL-1.

There are other speculations on TL-1, such as TL-10 was purely for export, while TL-1 is designated for domestic Chinese use, but these have yet to be verified when more detailed technical information is released in the future. Although the manufacturer has claimed that TL-1 can be deployed from various platforms, the sample shown at the 7th Zhuhai Airshow was ship-born only, designated as JJ/TL-1, with JJ standing for Jian Jian ( hạm hạm ), meaningShip (to) Ship.

Specifications

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Operators

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Map with TL-10 operators in blue

Current operators

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References

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  1. ^"Chinese Navy conducts firing test of new YJ-9 anti-ship missile from Z-9D naval helicopter".armyrecognition.10 April 2021.
  2. ^abcdefHewson, Robert (17 November 2004). "China aids Iran's tactical missile programme".Jane's Defence Weekly.
  3. ^"Khinh hình phản hạm đạo đạn ưng kích 9E thị phản hạm đạo đạn".NetEase News.14 February 2018.
  4. ^"Đồ văn: Trung hàng nhị tập đoàn triển xuất đích tân thức TL-10A hình phản hạm đạo đạn".Sina News.2 November 2004.
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