HQ-9

The HQ-9 (pinyin: hóng qí, "red flag" or "red banner") is China’s new generation medium- to long-range, active radar homing air defence missile.

The naval HQ-9 appears to be identical to the land-based variant. Its naval type HHQ-9 is equipped in the PLAN Type 052C Lanzhou class destroyer in VLS launch tubes.

The land-based HQ-9 system has an anti-radiation variant, known as the FT-2000 for export. The export designation for air defense version is FD-2000 (with FD stands for Fang Dun [防盾], meaning defensive shield), and its developer China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corporation (CPMIEC) first made it public at the Africa Aerospace and Defence Exhibition held at Cape Town in March 2009. In September 2013 the HQ-9 submitted by CPMIEC won Turkey's T-LORAMIDS program to co-produce 12 long range air defense systems.; however, multiple sources have reported that the deal has yet to be confirmed, with the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu saying, ”It is not a finalised deal yet. If the American and European companies make us better offers, we will continue to talk with them.” The American Congress responded by blocking all American funds for the integration of the Chinese systems into NATO defenses.

Design
The most basic formation of a HQ-9 batteries consisted of one Type 305B search radar, one tracking radar, one 200 kW Diesel generator truck, and eight Transporter erector launchers (TELs) each with 4 missiles, totaling 32 rounds ready to fire. These equipments are usually mounted on Tai'an trucks. This basic formation can be expanded into more capable larger formation, with the addition of the following equipment: one TWS-312 command post, one site survey vehicle based on Chinese Humvee, one main power grid converter, additional transporter / loader vehicles with each vehicle housing four missile TELs based on Tai'an TAS5380, one Type 120 low altitude search radar, one Type 305A AESA search radar for full anti ballistic missile capability, and a passive radar against stealth targets.

Missile
Similar to the Russian S-300V, the HQ-9 is a two-stage missile. The first stage has a diameter of 700 mm and the 2nd stage 560 mm, with a total mass of almost 2 tons and a length of 6.8m. The missile is armed with a 180 kg warhead, has a maximum speed of Mach 4.2. and has a maximum range of 200 km. The thrust vector control (TVC) of HQ-9 is the most obvious visual identification that distinguish it from S300V: TVC of HQ-9 is exposed and thus can be observed from the side, while TVC of S300V is not exposed. The HQ-9's guidance system is composed of inertial guidance plus mid-course uplink and active radar terminal guidance systems.

The system first used a missile in a box-like launcher canted at an angle, just like the MIM-104 Patriot. However the missile was very large because of China's limited experience with solid-fuel rockets. Due to Russian assistance and technology transfers, the missile and launcher are in their present form, a transporter erector launcher with missiles inside a cylindrical container. The missile apparently has a limited anti ballistic missile capability.

Radars
To reduce the cost, the HQ-9 is designed to be flexible enough to employ a wide range of radars, both the search/surveillance/acquisition radar and the tracking/engagement/fire control radar (FCR).

Fire control radar
Many FCRs of other Chinese SAM can be used for HQ-9, such as FCR used in KS-1 SAM, SJ-212, itself an enlarged and improved version of the SJ-202 fire control radar (FCR) used in HQ-2J. H-200 & SJ-231 FCRs of latter models of KS-1 SAM are also compatible with HQ-9.

HT-233 Radar
To maximize the combat effectiveness of HQ-9, a dedicated FCR for HQ-9 was developed, and it is most commonly seen with HQ-9. Designated as HT-233, this radar is the most advanced FCRs HQ-9 could employ, and it has greater similarities to the MIM-104 Patriot's MPQ-53 than the S-300's 30N6 (Flap-Lid) series, working in the NATO G-band (4–6 GHz) also as a search and targeting radar. This could be due to an alleged transfer of Patriot technology to China. The radar can search a 120 degree arc in azimuth and 0-90 degrees in elevation out to 300 km, with a peak power output on 1MW (average 60 kW). The radar is credited as being able to track 100 targets and guides up to 6 missiles to 6 targets, or alternatively, to 3 targets with a pair of missile for each target.

HT-233 is the FCR used by HQ-9 that is closest to AN/MPQ-53: In comparison to earlier H-200 radar used by early models of KS-1 SAM which uses a simple horn instead of lens arrangement, HT-233 radar adopts lens arrangement of AN/MPQ-53. In comparison to SJ-231 radar used by the latest model of KS-1, HT-233 has a thousand more phase shifter on its antenna array, totaling four thousand, as opposed to the three thousand of SJ-231. In contrast, both AN/MPQ-53 & 30N6E radars have ten thousand phase shifters on their antenna arrays respectively. HT-233 radar is mounted on Tai'an TAS5501 10 x 10 high mobility cross country truck, and operates in C-band at 300 MHz. When deployed as a search radar TH-233 is fielded at brigade level, while FCR radars deployed would be SJ-212, H-200 or SJ-231. HT-233 is credited with a detection range of 120 km, scanning 360 degrees in azimuth and 0-65 degrees in elevation. It can track 100 targets and designate 50 for engagements.

Search radars
Several search radars are discovered to be associated with HQ-9, including anti-ballistic radars and anti-stealth radars.

Type 305B radar
Type 305B (also known as LLQ-305B) radar is the standard search radar for HQ-9, and it is a development of YLC-2 Radar. This 3-D radar which has an antenna height of 3.5 meters, and employs sixty 350 mm waveguide feeds. It operates in the S-band at a wavelength of 11.67 cm.

Type 120 radar
Type 120 (also known as LLQ-120) radar is the low altitude search radar, it is a telescoping radar with an antenna height of 2.3 metres folded, and 7 metres unfolded, using a feed network of sixteen 230mm wave guides. It rotates at a maximum of ten revolutions per minute, and operates in the L-band at a wavelength of 23.75 cm.

Type 305A radar
Type 305A (also known as LLQ-305A) radar is another search radar for HQ-9 system. This AESA radar is designed maximize the anti-ballistic capability of HQ-9, and it resembles Thales Ground Master 400 AESA radar. Very little info is released about this radar other than it can also act as FCR.

YLC-20 passive sensor
Although Type 305 radars are effective against stealthy targets such as F-22 or F-35, full stealth target such as B-2 is difficult to detect. YLC-20 passive radar was conceptually based on KRTP-91 Tamara passive sensor, incorporating experience obtained from documentation acquired during the abortive attempt to procure six Czech VERA passive sensors. YLC-20 passive radar was first revealed in 2006.

DWL002 passive sensor
DWL002 passive radar is the development of earlier YLC-20, incorporating Kolchuga passive sensor, four of which were sold to China. Like its predecessor YLC-20, DWL002 is also developed by China Electronics Technology Corp. (CETC).

Variants

 * FT-2000 - Anti radiation version that was the first model of HQ-9 family being completed.
 * HQ-9 - TVM version SAM.
 * HHQ-9 — Naval version.
 * HQ-9A — Upgraded version, first tested in 1999 and service entry in 2001. Chinese sources claim that the HQ-9 family of systems employ much newer computing technology than imported Russian S-300PMU/PMU1/PMU2 systems, because HQ-9 is developed more than a decade later, thus allowing it to incorporate advancement in microelectronics. Due to the superior computing capability for signal processing, data processing and guidance support, this missile can have an optional semi-active radar homing (SARH) mode, because more info can be processed on board the missile itself.
 * HHQ-9A — Ship-borne naval version of HQ-9A. Eight 6-cell vertical launch silos, of cylindrical shape and using "cold launch" method, mounted on the Type 052C destroyer (48 missiles in total).
 * FD-2000 - First revealed in the 8th Zhuhai Airshow, the export version of HQ-9, providing extra anti-stealth capability by incorporating YLC-20 passive sensor as an option.
 * HQ-9B — reportedly tested in February 2006. According to Jane's Information Group, this missile has a dual seeker that incorporates both SARH & imaging IR mode
 * HQ-9C - Currently under development, incorporating active radar homing mode.
 * T-LORAMIDS- Is a heavily modified co-produced (Turkey and China) version of the FD-2000. Designed to accommodate the special requirements of the Turkish Land Forces Command, it will feature Turkish produced and NATO compliant Command and Control Systems. There is also speculation of the use of an ASELSAN of Turkey developed radar.

Confirmed Operators

 * People's Liberation Army & People's Liberation Army Navy.