TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) on Tuesday (April 16) released photos of the first live-fire test of the new land-based Sky Sword II missiles (Land Sword II).

At 9:10 a.m., the first Land Sword II missile was launched from Pingtung County's Jiupeng Military Base, as part of the Shen Gong (Divine Bow) Exercises. Three Land Sword II missiles were fired with all hitting their targets, drones built by the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST).

This marked the first time the 43rd Artillery Command of the 8th Army Corps and the 21st Artillery Command of the 6th Army Corps conducted live-fire exercises using the new land-based air defense missile system. The MND said this “demonstrated the results of the diligent training of the troops and the excellent interception performance of the system.”

The missile system is a derivative of the Sky Sword II missile and is designed to replace the Chaparral air-defense system. The effective range of the new system is estimated to be 15 km, with the ability to detect and strike fixed-wing enemy aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, and cruise missiles.

In addition, troops also fired FIM-92 Stingers from the Dual Mount Stinger (DMS) system and Humvee-mounted Avenger weapon system at aerial targets and drones. The MND said that these systems also successfully hit their targets, “verifying the effectiveness of the soldiers' daily training.”