China’s HQ-9 deployment in South China Sea

The Jamestown foundation has published a report on China’s recent deployment of a HQ-9 air defense missile unit to Woody island in South China Sea.

Graphic: Peter Wood

According to Timothy Heath, the “tactical significance [of the deployment] increases when deployed in combination with other anti-access, area denial (A2/AD) weapons.”

“The most direct tactical effect in peacetime is to threaten the safety of U.S. surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft that may pass by the islands, such as the U.S. Navy’s P-3 or P-8 patrol planes.”