Missile YJ-83 (CSS-N-8 Saccade)

The YJ-83 (NATO reporting name: CSS-N-8 Saccade) is a Chinese subsonic anti-ship cruise missile. Developed as a successor to the C-802, the YJ-83 entered service with the People's Liberation Army Navy in 1998 and 1999. The air-launched variant, the YJ-83K, is operated by both the People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force and the People's Liberation Army Air Force.

The missile is propelled by a CTJ-2 turbojet engine and utilizes microprocessors and a compact strap-down inertial reference unit for midcourse navigation. Terminal guidance is executed via active radar. The standard surface-launched version is armed with a high-explosive fragmentation warhead, while the air-launched YJ-83K carries a high-explosive, semi-armour-piercing warhead. The YJ-83KH variant replaces the radar seeker with an imaging-infrared seeker and has the capability to receive remote course corrections. A land-attack derivative, the KD-88, features a redesigned airframe and utilizes either television or imaging-infrared guidance.

The missile family is widely deployed. Export versions, designated C-802, C-802A, and the air-launched C-802AK, are operated by Algeria, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Myanmar, Pakistan, Syria, Thailand, Yemen, Venezuela, and Hezbollah. Iran also manufactures a domestic copy of the C-802 under the designation Noor.

The weapon has been employed in several maritime engagements. During the 2006 Lebanon War, Hezbollah forces launched two C-802 missiles equipped with upgraded Iranian radar seekers. One missile struck an Egyptian freighter, while the second hit the Israeli Navy Sa'ar 5-class corvette INS Hanit off the coast of Beirut. The strike on INS Hanit damaged the helicopter deck, ignited fuel storage, and killed four crew members. In October 2016, during the Yemeni Civil War, Houthi forces launched a C-802 variant configured with an explosively formed penetrator warhead, heavily damaging the United Arab Emirates-operated transport vessel HSV-2 Swift.