The HQ-16, exported as the LY-80 family, is a Chinese medium-range surface-to-air missile system spanning road-mobile land batteries and the ship-launched HHQ-16 branch. It fills the layer between short-range point defenses and long-range strategic SAMs, with six-canister land launchers, radar and command vehicles, and a naval VLS fit on Type 054A-family frigates. In the 2025 India-Pakistan Conflict, Indian government and Indian press reporting identified Pakistan as relying on imported HQ-16 systems during Operation Sindoor, making it a documented part of Pakistan's contested air-defense picture.
Pakistan fielded imported HQ-16/LY-80-family air-defense systems as part of its Chinese-supplied air-defense network during Operation Sindoor; public reporting on their performance is largely based on Indian government claims and should be treated as disputed.
HQ-16 family designations mix domestic land variants, naval HHQ-16/LY-80N shipboard systems, and export labels. Public sources support LY-80 as an export land-system label, but they do not consistently map every LY-80 reference to one domestic HQ-16A, HQ-16B, or HQ-16BE block.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| HQ-16A | Baseline land-based system | The U.S. Army ODIN entry identifies the HQ-16/HQ-16A as the Chinese 6x6 medium-range SAM system, while DSIAC identifies Pakistan's 2017 LY-80 induction as the HQ-16A in Chinese service. Sources: HQ-16 (HQ-16A) Chinese 6x6 Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missile System, Pakistan Strengthens Low-to-Medium Altitude Air Defense |
| HQ-16B | Extended-range land variant | Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance lists HQ-16B as a follow-on variant and places HQ-16B/HQ-16C in the roughly 70 km range class. Sources: HQ-16 |
| HQ-16C | Later extended-range branch | Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance describes HQ-16C as a later development in the same family, with public details more limited than the HQ-16A/B branch. Sources: HQ-16 |
| HHQ-16 | Naval ship-launched variant | Reference sources identify HHQ-16 as the naval branch, and GlobalSecurity identifies Type 054A frigates as using a 32-cell Red Flag-16 / HQ-16 ship-to-air missile launcher. Sources: HQ-16, Jiangkai Type 054 Frigate |
| LY-80 | Export land-system label | SAST markets LY-80 as a medium-range export air-defense weapon system; DSIAC identifies Pakistan's inducted LY-80 as known in China as HQ-16A, while SAST's current product page also pairs LY-80 with the HQ-16BE designation. Sources: SAST: LY Series, SAST: LY-80 (HQ-16BE) Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missile Weapon System, Pakistan Strengthens Low-to-Medium Altitude Air Defense |
| LY-80N | Export ship-to-air system | SAST identifies LY-80N as a ship-to-air missile weapon system and labels the current product page HQ-16E; Dawn reported a Pakistan Navy LY-80(N) live firing from a vertical launch system in January 2026. Sources: SAST: LY Series, SAST: LY-80N (HQ-16E) Ship-to-Air Missile Weapon System, Dawn: Pakistan Navy Successfully Tests Surface-to-Air Missile at Sea |
| HQ-16FE | Newer export-oriented branch | Defense-show reporting identifies HQ-16FE as a SAST-presented HQ-16 variant at Airshow China 2022; Al Jundi reports a larger advertised engagement envelope and SARH plus active-radar final-stage guidance. Sources: Army Recognition: Zhuhai Airshow 2022 HQ-16FE, Al Jundi: China Unveils Modern Air Defence System |
The HQ-16 family includes a naval branch used from vertical-launch cells on Type 054A-family frigates.
| Carrier | Carrier type | Carriage evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Frigate-mounted VLS platform | GlobalSecurity identifies the Type 054A as carrying a 32-cell Red Flag-16 / HQ-16 ship-to-air missile launcher, and the Commons image source shows HQ-16 VLS launchers on Xuzhou, a Type 054A frigate. |
The HQ-16 family uses overlapping domestic, naval, and export labels rather than a clean single sequence. LY-80 should be treated as an export land-system label unless a source identifies the exact domestic block.
HQ-16A is the baseline land system; HQ-16B and HQ-16C are public extended-range family labels.
LY-80 appears in sources as Pakistan's inducted system and in SAST marketing as LY-80 (HQ-16BE).
Do not treat every LY-80 reference as the same range block.
HHQ-16 is the Chinese naval family label; SAST markets LY-80N as HQ-16E for shipboard use.
HQ-16FE was reported at Airshow China 2022 with a much larger advertised engagement envelope.
HQ-9 appears alongside HQ-16 in source-backed reporting on Pakistan's Chinese-supplied air-defense network during Operation Sindoor. This is an operational-context link for Pakistan's layered air-defense picture, not a technical launch or compatibility relationship.
Sources: Akashteer: The Unseen Force Behind India's New War Capability; How Pakistan's Imported HQ-9 and HQ-16 Failed but India's Indigenous Akashteer Proved Its Mettle.
Open-source references place HQ-16 development in the mid-2000s, with the system later emerging as a Chinese medium-range air and missile defense layer.
Sources: Army Recognition: Zhuhai Airshow 2022 HQ-16FE
Reference data places initial HQ-16 operational service in the early 2010s, with HQ-16A, HQ-16B, and HHQ-16 forming the active family branches identified in public airpower tracking.
Sources: Army Recognition: Zhuhai Airshow 2022 HQ-16FE, HQ-16 Technical Data
Public reporting identified HQ-16B as an upgraded branch with revised missile features and an approximately 70 km range class.
Sources: HQ-16, Army Recognition: Zhuhai Airshow 2022 HQ-16FE
Pakistan inducted the Chinese-made LY-80 low-to-medium-altitude air-defense system, adding the HQ-16A export branch to its ground-based air-defense network.
Sources: Dawn: Army Inducts Chinese-Built Air Defence System to Its Arsenal, Pakistan Strengthens Low-to-Medium Altitude Air Defense
Chinese media later described the HQ-16FE as an export-oriented advanced air-defense system displayed at Airshow China 2022, with a stronger anti-deception and longer-range branch than earlier variants.
Sources: Army Recognition: Zhuhai Airshow 2022 HQ-16FE, Al Jundi: China Unveils Modern Air Defence System
Indian government and Indian press reporting identified Pakistan's imported HQ-16 systems in the Operation Sindoor air-defense contest, while performance claims remained disputed and source-limited.
Sources: Akashteer: The Unseen Force Behind India's New War Capability, How Pakistan's Imported HQ-9 and HQ-16 Failed but India's Indigenous Akashteer Proved Its Mettle
Dawn reported an ISPR statement that Pakistan Navy fired an LY-80(N) surface-to-air missile from a vertical launch system during a North Arabian Sea exercise.
Sources: Dawn: Pakistan Navy Successfully Tests Surface-to-Air Missile at Sea
