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Sometimes, a single day can change everything.
One of those days was August 2nd, 2022 - the day Nancy Pelosi arrived in Taiwan.
To put this in perspective, she is only the third member of the US government to do so,
and the consequences of such a visit could have far-reaching, unpredictable consequences.
Over 200,000 people watched the historical landing of Pelosi’s plane.
But why?
Because Chinese fighters took to the air, and all of China’s military was put on high
alert.
There have also been rumors of a possible air battle between Taiwan and China’s air
forces.
Luckily, as of August 8, 2022, nothing has happened, but let's see how the countries
could respond to each other in the event of war.
By the way, one of China’s stated goals is to seize the numerous microchip factories
in Taiwan.
They’re practically drooling over them.
As always, get comfortable, because it’s about to get interesting.
Let’s begin.
First we’ll compare each potential opponent’s fighters.
Taiwan actually has a surprise up its sleeve, so let’s start with China.
The Su-35 China puts this fighter to work all the time.
In fact, it was this exact aircraft that flew on high alert towards Taiwan on August 2.
It is a 4++ generation, supermaneuverable, universal Russian fighter with thrust vector
control.
As of 2022, the Chinese Army has 24 Su-35s at its disposal.
We can’t forget about the fighter’s weaponry, of course.
Its arsenal includes a GSh-30-1 30-millimeter aircraft gun with 150 rounds, as well as medium,
short and long range air-to-air missiles.
It also has air-to-ground missiles, namely anti-ship, precision-guided, and unguided
munitions.
But understand that China has most certainly made upgrades to its fighters’ electronics,
but something tells us that the improvements are far off from the original.
By the way, let us remind you that the aircraft was developed by a Russian organization, namely,
the Sukhoi Design Bureau.
One would naturally assume then that the Chinese have made use of the available upgrades.
The AIDC F-CK-1 Let's move on to the surprises.
This is a Taiwanese multi-purpose supersonic fighter, developed by companies like: Aerospace
Industrial Development Corporation, and of course the famous General Dynamics.
The AIDC is the first Taiwanese fighter to have several variants:
The F-CK-1A - the basic single-seat version The F-CK-1B - the basic two-seat version
The F-CK-1C - the upgraded single-seat version The F-CK-1D - the upgraded two-seat version
Now let’s visually compare the fighters when it comes to firepower.
So, we have: a 20-mm, 6-barreled M61 Vulcan air cannon, as well as air-to-air missiles,
4 Tianjian-1s or 4 Tianjian-2s.
For air-to-surface missiles, we have the anti-ship Hsiung Feng II.
And to top it all off, we have Mk-80s and Wan Chien cluster bombs with GPS guidance,
which, as we all know, can be a terrifying thing.
In addition to this fighter, Taiwan is armed with American F-16s.
Now let’s take a look at the multiple rocket launch systems of each belligerent.
As usual, let’s start with China.
The WS-2 and WS-D This Chinese multiple launch rocket system
has a 400-mm caliber, with the D modification having a caliber of 425 mm.
The system was developed by Sichuan Aerospace Industry Corporation, a state-run company.
The weapon is built on the chassis of a Taian TAC-5450 four-axle truck, also known as the
“Guardian-2”.
The system’s minimum firing range is between 25 and 38 miles, with a maximum of 250 miles.
The WS-2 has been in operation since 2004, and the D variant since 2008.
Aside from China, the system is in service with Sudan.
The Type-63 While we’re in China, let’s talk about
an older system that was born back in 1963, but is still in service today.
That alone is saying something.
One interesting fact about the Type-63 is that it is in service with illegal formations,
making it a violator in its own right.
It’s also in service in interesting countries like North Korea, Syria, and Libya.
And, of course, it would absolutely be used by China in the event of a war against Taiwan.
The weapon’s maximum strike range is a little over 5 miles.
The Ray-Ting 2000 Let’s sail over to Taiwan and see what that
country is working with.
Allies like the USA are, of course, prepared to provide any weapons necessary, in addition
to what is already on the island.
But as we already know, Taiwan has plenty to brag about when it comes to its armament,
and we all know about the legendary HIMARS.
The Ray-Ting is a wheeled multiple rocket launcher system developed by the Chung Shan
National Institute of Science and Technology.
It is in service with the armed forces of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and was created
with the aim of delivering strikes against enemy forces trying to land on the island
from the sea.
That’s an important strategy, because we know that China would attack from the sea
in the event of war.
The weapon has 3 different caliber shells: 1) The Mk15 - 117 millimeters, 2) The Mk30
- 180 millimeters and 3) the Mk45 - 227 millimeters.
The firing range, respectively, also depends on the projectile: For the Mk15 it’s 9 miles,
for the Mk30, naturally, it’s 19 miles, and the Mk45 can strike up to 28 miles.
We think that’s enough to discourage China, at least initially.
But that's still not all.
Due to growing threats, the National Institute has developed improved versions of the existing
family of missiles by giving them extended ranges.
As of 2019, the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology has tested upgraded
missiles up to 63 nautical miles and believed that even longer ranges were possible.
Shortly thereafter, testing of more advanced missiles began.
With a range of 125-187 miles, the new munitions are capable of reaching China, even when fired
from mainland Taiwan.
That’s a game-changer.
For some reason, we are convinced that, despite its smaller size, Taiwan will fight China,
who would be stunned, because the precedent has already been set in Ukraine.
The large militaries of totalitarian countries tend to greatly overestimate their power,
while the exact opposite tends to be true of smaller, democratic countries.
Now let's see what these two countries are capable of at sea.
This should also be interesting.
Let's stick to tradition and start with China’s navy.
It is ranked second only to the United States in terms of power, although it has more units
than the American fleet.
Communists always prefer quantity over quality, regardless of the country.
Let's look at the numbers, because in the event of a war between China and Taiwan, it
matters.
So, the Chinese Navy has 350 ships at its disposal, while the US Navy can counter that
with its 293 ships.
Still, it’s important to understand that China has just 3 aircraft carriers, while
the United States boasts 11.
Let's check out the Chinese aircraft carriers.
1.
The Fujian.
We’ve featured this ship in one of our previous videos.
It’s a second-generation aircraft carrier and the first to use the CATOBAR system, which
are electromagnetic catapults for launching carrier-based aircraft.
The Americans know all about this, because the’ve been using electromagnetic catapults
for quite some time.
2.
The Shandong, or Project 002, is the first aircraft carrier built entirely within China.
It was launched in April of 2017.
3.
The Liaoning.
Here’s an interesting fact: this ship was launched on December 6, 1985 at the shipyard
of the Chernomorsky Shipbuilding Plant in Nikolaev, Ukraine.
It was subsequently purchased by China in 1998.
On September 25, 2012, it became part of the Chinese Navy, although it was originally planned
to be a floating entertainment center.
It is also worth mentioning that Chinese naval forces have 8 landing ships that they would
desperately need in a fight against Taiwan.
China’s fleet also includes destroyers, frigates, and corvettes.
It would certainly seem like China is prepared for battle, but there’s always that “but”.
And that “but” is the Taiwanese Navy with the full support of the United States.
Let's take a look at its naval arsenal.
Surface ships: Four Kee Lung class destroyers purchased in
2005 from the United States: the Kee Lung (DDG-1801), the Su Ao (DDG-1802), the Zuo
Ying (DDG- 1803), and the “Ma Kong” (DDG-1805).
Taiwan also has eight Oliver Hazard Perry-class American frigates from the Cheng Kung project.
Taiwan received four more of these frigates in 2015.
8 Chi Yang ships, which are old American Knox-class frigates.
Six Kang Ding-class frigates: French-built Lafayette-class frigates: the Kang Ding (FFG-1202),
the Si Ning (FFG-1203), the Kun Ming (FFG-1205), the Di Hua (FFG-1206), the Wu Chang (FFG-1207)
and the Chen De (FFG-1208).
Taiwan also has 45 small warships: 31 Kuang Hua VI missile boats armed with four
HF-II missiles.
Built in 2005-2012.
12 Ching Chiang-class patrol ships 12 light patrol gunboats
And just like that, we have come to the conclusion portion of our video.
What we’ve learned is that if a war breaks out, there is also a risk of a nuclear draw.
But given that China has swallowed Nancy Pelosi's visit, the possibility of war at the moment
is still minimal.
At least, that's our opinion.
That’s all, folks!
Stay with us, because it only gets more interesting from here!