TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taiwan Army has allotted NT$4.8 million (US$148,186) this year to purchase 60 sets of Kestrel rocket training laser designators from the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology.
For this year and the next, the Army also set a budget of NT$596.2 million to procure 5,962 rockets, bringing its total firepower to over 10,000, Liberty Times reported.
The Kestrel anti-armor rocket is a disposable weapon with a standard armor-piercing warhead weighing about 5.1 kg. The rocket can penetrate 350 mm of rolled homogeneous armor and has a range of about 400 meters.
The rocket can be fitted with a special warhead designed for breaching concrete bunkers and buildings, weighing about 6.5 kg. It can penetrate 20 cm thick reinforced concrete walls, though it has a shorter range of approximately 150 meters.
Taiwan Marines and Coast Guard Administration personnel deployed on Dongsha Island are equipped with Kestrel rockets to enhance their area denial and anti-armor capabilities.