Han Kuang-wei (; 29 January 1930 – 1 June 2019) was a Taiwanese general officer and engineer. Han was born on 29 January 1930 in Xiaowangquan, a village in Maping Township, ,

Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...

. He was educated in

Qingdao Qingdao, Mandarin: , (Qingdao Mandarin: t͡ɕʰiŋ˧˩ tɒ˥) is a prefecture-level city in the eastern Shandong Province of China. Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, Qingdao was long an important fortress. In 1897, the city was ceded to G ...

, and traveled by boat to Taiwan during the

Great Retreat The Great Retreat (), also known as the retreat from Mons, was the long withdrawal to the River Marne in August and September 1914 by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army. The Franco-British forces on the Western F ...

. After arriving in Taiwan, Han enrolled at Taichung Agricultural College (presently

National Chung Hsing University National Chung Hsing University (NCHU; ; lit. National Resurgence University) is a comprehensive research university in South District, Taichung, Taiwan. Currently, NCHU is among the four universities of the Taiwan Comprehensive University Sys ...

) to study forestry. He graduated from the Republic of China Naval College of Technology in 1955, and was awarded a governmental scholarship to pursue a doctorate in electrical engineering at the

Naval Postgraduate School Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a Naval command with a graduate university mission, operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. The NPS mission is to provide "defense-focused graduate education, including clas ...

in the United States, which he completed in 1961. Between 1962 and 1964, Han was an associate professor in the ROCNCT, then a research associate at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, in 1965. He then worked for the

National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST; ) is a Taiwanese state owned corporation, formerly part of the Ministry of National Defense's Armaments Bureau, which is active in the development, manufacturing, support, and ...

(NCSIST) from 1966 to 1995. He led research and development into what became the Hsiung Feng family of missiles, (primarily HF-1 and HF-2), and served as director of the Hsiung Feng project from 1982. Han became deputy director of the NCSIST System Development Center in 1984. Han was elected a member of

Academia Sinica Academia Sinica (AS, ; zh, t=中央研究院) is the national academy of the Taiwan, Republic of China. It is headquartered in Nangang District, Taipei, Nangang, Taipei. Founded in Nanjing, the academy supports research activities in mathemat ...

in 1990, and retired from the

Republic of China Armed Forces The Republic of China Armed Forces ( zh, t=中華民國國軍) are the national military forces of the Taiwan, Republic of China (ROC), which is now based primarily in the Taiwan Area but Republic of China (1912–1949), formerly governed Mai ...

with the rank of major general. During his active military service, and after retirement, Han was an adjunct or visiting professor at several Taiwanese universities, including

National Chiao Tung University National Chiao Tung University (NCTU) was a public research university in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Established in 1896 as Nanyang Public School by an imperial edict of the Guangxu Emperor, it was one of China's leading universities. After the Chinese ...

National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; zh, t=國立臺灣大學, poj=Kok-li̍p Tâi-oân Tāi-ha̍k, p=, s=) is a National university, national Public university, public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in 1928 during Taiwan under J ...

, and

Yuan Ze University Yuan Ze University (YZU; ) is a private university located in Taoyuan City, Taiwan. Established in 1989, YZU campus is in Zhongli District, Taoyuan; Taipei; and Bade District, Taoyuan. Yuan Ze has five colleges, Engineering (accredited by IEET), ...

, where he held a Distinguished Chair Professorship. At his death, he was the only ROCAF general officer to have been elected an academician of the Academia Sinica. Han died in the United States on 1 June 2019, aged 89. President

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; pinyin: ''Cài Yīngwén''; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician and legal scholar who served as the seventh president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2016 to 2024. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party ...

issued a posthumous presidential citation commemorating Han on 2 July 2019.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Han, Kuang-wei 1930 births 2019 deaths Members of Academia Sinica Republic of China Navy officers Taiwanese people from Shandong Taiwanese electrical engineers National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology people 20th-century Taiwanese engineers Engineers from Shandong Taiwanese expatriates in the United States National Chung Hsing University alumni Naval Postgraduate School alumni