#台媒: 4 PLA missiles "flew over Taipei"# Why did the Patriot missile not intercept?
The PATRIOT air defense system's AN/MPQ-65 radar, which can detect more than 100 targets, detects the TBM "theater ballistic missile" threat. The system automatically recognizes the flight characteristics of the incoming missile and automatically assigns the track number to the target.
The ECS (Combat Control Station) automatically calculates the GIP (Ground Intercept Point), also known as the "crater," and ballistic missiles will fall outside the Patriot Air Defense System's protected area.
Shi Hsiao-wei, a Taiwanese military expert, explained this: The air defense warning was not issued because the PLA launched the DF-15B short-range ballistic missile, which was outside the atmosphere when passing over the island of Taiwan, so there was no need to issue an air defense warning.
So why aren't "patriots" used for interception? Shi Xiaowei said: The "Patriot" air defense missiles imported from the United States are "very expensive", and the cost of a DF-15B ballistic missile is only one-third of the cost of a Patriot missile; And usually, to intercept a ballistic missile requires firing two interceptors, so the cost of interception is too high. In addition, even if the Patriot is launched, it may not be able to obtain the altitude of the ballistic missile.
