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Weishi WS-43 / Defender-43 - Loitering Munition

Chinese arms companies have already developed many types of suicide drones, including the CH-901 and WS-43. The WS-43 loitering munition is an export type with a range of 20 to 60 kilometers, a continuous cruising time of more than half an hour, and a maximum flight speed of 300 km/h. As an important long-range suppression weapon of the army, the multi-purpose missile rocket weapon system has always played an important role in the army equipment and combat use of all countries in the world since its birth, and has received close attention from major military powers in the world.

As the strike firepower of various services and arms under the conditions of modern warfare is developing in the direction of long-range, high-precision, multi-purpose and intelligentization, the Seventh Research Institute of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation has followed the trend of the times and conducted a lot of research and demonstration work. Its self-developed new-generation "Guardian" rocket weapon system has achieved impressive results and has been successfully exported to many countries.

From the earliest WS-I/1B and WS-2 to the WS-600L, WS-64, WS-3A, WS-43, WS-22, TS-01 and other models that have appeared in Zhuhai, the "Guardian" series of rocket weapon systems has changed from the initial relatively simple non-control to high-precision guidance and control, from the development of general tactical weapons to the integrated development of tactical weapon systems, the categories cover multiple rockets, tactical missiles, guided artillery shells, gliding guided bombs, cruise missiles and other territories.

The relevant person in charge of the Sichuan Aerospace Technology Research Institute said that looking at the development history of the "Guardian" family, it can be described as "a single spark, can start a prairie fire." By 2018, more than 10 models have been approved by the national military trade export project. The Guardian series of multiple rocket weapon systems and Feiteng aviation gliding guided bombs have achieved export and technology transfer to many countries. The "Guardian" has become an international military trade as a well-known brand in the field.

The WS-43 cruise rocket is very different from ordinary rockets. First of all, the shape of this WS-43 rocket is very peculiar, with a very obvious rocket booster at the tail and flying wings on the body. Resident experts said that the current operations are systemized operations, and the operational concept of their WS-43 cruise rockets is networked cruise operations. The WS-43 rocket is one of the most critical links based on the core system of the product.

The WS-43 rocket is called a cruise missile, which is similar to a drone-style flying hovering, but it can also strike like a rocket. It has more functions because it has an infrared seeker on its head, so it can It realizes both reconnaissance and strikes against some sensitive targets, and it is also equipped with firepower calls. When it sees an important target, it can use firepower to call different weapons to attack depending on the target. Because of its rich functions, some high-value targets appear, but if they disappear soon, it can strike on its own, so that it can form the strike effect of system combat integration.

The WS-43 gliding cruise rocket can be launched together with the WS33 precision guided rocket, and it is also compatible with the 122mm 40-barrel rocket launcher. The WS-43 system was developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, and the system was first displayed at the 2014 Zhuhai Air Show. The warhead of the system weighs 20 kilograms, has a range of 60 kilometers, and can hover over the target for 30 minutes. This glide bomb uses inertial and GPS guidance as a mid-flight guidance method, and the missile is also equipped with an infrared imaging guide for terminal guidance. This missile can effectively track moving and fixed targets.

Currently, GPS composite guidance technology is adopted. In the future, with the completion of Beidou, the Beidou navigation system with higher precision will be adopted. It can carry a 20 kg warhead. Thanks to the modular design, different warheads, including anti-radiation warheads, high-explosive combustion warheads, etc., can be assembled in wartime according to different battlefield needs. If you follow the specifications of 6 launch vehicles in a battalion, there are a total of 25 launch containers, which can carry at least 90 "patrol bombs"! If a WS-22 122mm rocket and a WS-33 400mm rocket are mixed, a joint combat system can be formed. Moreover, it can adapt to a variety of battle scenes and combat needs. The WS-43 can be launched from a rocket launcher, has a range of 60 kilometers and can then stay above its target for 30 minutes.

< This genre of weapon is considered a mixture of a cruise missile and a drone. After taking off, it can remain in the air for an extended period of time for battlefield reconnaissance and surveillance like a drone, but after locating a target, it can launch a suicide attack like a missile. Some types of suicide drones can return to base for future deployment if they do not find a target.

Suicide drones can provide a wide variety of tactics, with the most useful being attacking time-sensitive targets. It can fly to a general area in advance, seek its target while waiting, and attack immediately when it finds the target, the expert said, noting that a missile will need time to launch and travel, which could result in missing the opportunity, and the suicide drone is also cheaper than an armed reconnaissance drone. Launching the suicide drone in advance also means that the enemy will have a harder time locating where it was launched from.

The Indonesian Army announced on 10 October 2016 that their senior representatives had arrived in China today to watch a live demonstration of a WS-43 rocket boosted glide bomb, which may indicate Indonesia would purchase this type of weapon. Those who came to watch the Chinese live ammunition shooting demonstration included Indonesian Artillery Theory, Education and Training Director, Brigadier General Yudi Satriyono, and Colonel Ruly Chandrayani, Director of the Indonesian Air Defense Artillery Administration and Research and Development Department. China's Long March International Trading Company sent personnel to West Java to introduce Indonesia's various cruise missiles, including the WS-43 system. This briefing was held on August 15th. An Indonesian defense industry company and China jointly reported.

It was not clear whether the Chinese People's Liberation Army was equipped with WS-43 cruise missiles, and it was also unclear whether the Indonesian military had special requirements for cruise missile systems in the list of requirements submitted to the Ministry of Defense. However, the Defense, Intelligence and Foreign Affairs Committee of the Indonesian House of Representatives had approved a total of US$45 million in funding under the Foreign Defense Credit Program to purchase missile systems for the Indonesian military. The funds would be allocated from 2015 to 2019.

A new generation of multi-systems represented by "Guardian" (code-named WS) was independently developed by the Seventh Research Institute of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (Sichuan Aerospace Technology Research Institute). The purpose missile weapon system was unveiled at the 12th Zhuhai Air Show in 2018.