According to the Chinese news website sina.com, after several attacks of Israel with air-to-ground missiles and some failed results with Russian S-300 and Pantsir-S1 against air threats, Syria could use Chinese-made FD-2000, an export version of the HQ-9 advanced long-range air defense missile weapon system.



Chinese-made FD-2000 long-range air defense missile system at AirShow China. (Picture source Army Recognition)

The US continues to collect technical information about Russian air defense systems that are also in service with NATO countries as Cyprus and Greece as well as countries with which the United States has deep relations as Ukraine and Egypt.

Russia has provided Pantsir-S1 and S-300 air defense missiles systems to Syria, but not really the latest version using a new generation of radar to detect and tracked air targets and old electronic systems lead to poor anti-jamming capabilities. The first generation of Russian-made S-300 is able to destroy tactical missiles with ranges of up to 300 km at distances of up to 30,000 m. The armament of Pantsir-S1 consists of twelve 57E6 surface-to-air guided missiles and two 2A38M30-millimetre automatic guns developed from the two-barreled 30mm GSh-30 gun. It is provided with multi-range radar capable of detecting aerial targets with an effective surface of dispersion of up to 2-3 square meters at a distance of more than 30 kilometers and tracks them down from a distance of over 24 kilometers.

China could offer the delivery of FD-2000 long-range air defense missile systems to Syria. The HQ-9 is a medium-to-long range air defense missile system designed and manufactured in China by the Defense Company CPMIEC (China Precision Machinery Import & Export Corporation). The HQ-9 system is designed to track and destroy aircraft, cruise missiles, air-to-surface missiles, and tactical ballistic missiles.

The FD-2000 is the export designation for China's HQ-9 air-defense system. It is a medium-altitude, medium-range design intended to provide protection against aircraft using 'hide-shoot-and-scoot' tactics to avoid any electronic countermeasures or anti-radiation missiles. The export version of HQ-9 provides extra anti-stealth capability by incorporating YLC-20 passive sensor as an option.

The FD-2000 missile is armed with a 180 kg warhead, has a maximum speed of Mach 4.2 and a maximum range of 125 km up to an altitude of 27 km. The missile has a proximity fuse with an effective range of 35 m, which goes active when the missile is 5 km away from its target.