HHQ-9C Chinese Naval Long-Range Air Defence Missile

The HHQ-9C is a new variant of the HHQ-9 naval long-range air defence missile, first publicly displayed at the Chinese military parade in September 2025. The missile features a more slender body with a larger booster compared to previous variants, and incorporates attitude control thrusters substituting traditional flight control surfaces. Analysis (Naval News, Sep 2025): The configuration is comparable to that of the Patriot PAC-3 CRI and MSE missiles. The slender airframe could allow dual-packing into Universal Vertical Launch System (UVLS) cells, though this remains speculative. The warhead type and exact performance specifications are undisclosed.