HSIUNG FENG III:The navy is surveilling the area where an anti-ship missile was accidentally fired to prevent Chinese vessels from finding the wreckage

Taipei Times
Date: May 10, 2017
By: Lo Tien-pin and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writer

The navy is still monitoring the waters off Kaohsiung to prevent Chinese spy vessels from picking up sensitive components from the Hsiung Feng III missile that was accidentally fired on July 1 last year, an officer said on Monday.

The anti-ship missile was accidentally fired by a Republic of China Navy Chinchiang-class corvette during a training exercise and struck a fishing trawler, killing one person and injuring three.

After intensive efforts to find the missile failed to produce any trace of the device, the navy concluded that it might have been totally destroyed after detonating when it hit the waters, said the officer, who declined to be named.

Although disintegration and immersion in salt water would likely make any debris worthless for intelligence purposes, the navy has been monitoring the area to prevent possible recovery of pieces by Chinese vessels and will continue to do so, the officer said.    [FULL  STORY]