Sky Sword I

The seeker uses dual spectral IR and has a detection range of 18.5 km. The Sky Sword 1 is also used as a surface-to-air missile by the Antelope air defence system.

• Name — Sky Sword I • Type — Guided missile • Origin — Taiwan • Is Vehicle — yes • Is Missile — yes • Service — 1980s to present • Used By — Republic of China Air Force and Republic of China Army • Design Date — Early 1980s • Manufacturer — National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology • Variants — Antelope air defence system and Sea Oryx • Illustration — TC-1 Sky Sword I (air-to-air) • Illustration — ROCAF F-CK-1A at Ching Chuan Kang Air Base with a TC-1 on the wingtip

The Sky Sword 1 was developed in the mid-1980s and revealed in May 1986, as Taiwan's first indigenous air-to-air missile. The production of the missile started in 1991 and the air-to-air version entered ROCAF service in 1993. It bears a striking similarity to the American AIM-9 (also in Taiwanese service) and fulfills a similar role on the Indigenous Defense Fighter to the AIM-9 on the F-16. In 2017 NCSIST exhibited a variant of the TC-1 with a larger diameter motor.

TC-1 missiles were employed during a 2019 training exercise off Taiwan’s east coast.

• Illustration — Antelope air defense system The TC-1L is a ground-launched variant for use with the Antelope air defence system.

Developed for use with the Sea Oryx system, the Sea TC-1 variant has an improved seeker, data-link, and rocket motor.

• AIM-9 Sidewinder • RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile * * • R.550 Magic * • MAA-1 Piranha • A-Darter • Fatter • R-73 (missile) * *