Local aircraft designer and manufacturer Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC, 漢翔航空工業) on Tuesday signed an agreement with Martin-Baker Aircraft Co to purchase ejection seat systems.
The British firm’s ejection seats are to be used in AIDC’s advanced jet trainer (AJT) that it is building for the air force, the company said.
AIDC chairman Anson Liao (廖榮鑫), who led a delegation to London to ink the accord, said in a statement that the agreement was a milestone for Taiwan’s national defense supply chain.
The Ministry of National Defense has commissioned AIDC and its supply chain to design and manufacture 66 advanced jet trainers, with the first prototype scheduled to be completed in 2019 and flight tests expected to start in 2020.
The 66 aircraft are scheduled to be delivered by 2026 and are to replace the military’s AT-3 trainer aircraft and F-5 jets, which are more than 30 years old.
“The contract between AIDC and Martin-Baker facilitates cooperation opportunities and is a major milestone in the launch of AJT systems,” AIDC said in the statement.
“Both parties will work together, not only to achieve the goal of making the AJT program successful, but also to extend future collaboration in areas such as ejection seats, pilot personal equipment, parachutes” and other equipment, the firm said.
The firms did not disclose financial terms for the agreement.
Representative to the UK David Lin (林永樂), who witnessed the signing of the agreement, said Taiwan values exchanges between Taiwanese and British enterprises, and Martin-Baker’s support for the nation’s advanced jet trainer development is appreciated.
Through the agreement, Taiwan and the UK will strengthen cooperation in aviation development to create a safer environment, he said.
The agreement would further integrate AIDC’s supply chain, which would help it deliver the 66 trainers on schedule, Liao said.
“We also expect to provide a chance to foster talent in the aerospace industry and strengthen the links between industries in Taiwan, which can lend great support to the development of AJTs and next-generation fighters,” Liao said.
AIDC shares yesterday rose 2.3 percent to close at NT$37.75 in Taipei trading, outperforming the TAIEX, which ended up 0.26 percent.
Shares in Taiwan closed at a new high yesterday, the first trading day of the new year, as contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) continued to break records amid an artificial intelligence (AI) boom, dealers said. The TAIEX closed up 386.21 points, or 1.33 percent, at 29,349.81, with turnover totaling NT$648.844 billion (US$20.65 billion). “Judging from a stronger Taiwan dollar against the US dollar, I think foreign institutional investors returned from the holidays and brought funds into the local market,” Concord Securities Co (康和證券) analyst Kerry Huang (黃志祺) said. “Foreign investors just rebuilt their positions with TSMC as their top target,
REVENUE PERFORMANCE: Cloud and network products, and electronic components saw strong increases, while smart consumer electronics and computing products fell Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) yesterday posted 26.51 percent quarterly growth in revenue for last quarter to NT$2.6 trillion (US$82.44 billion), the strongest on record for the period and above expectations, but the company forecast a slight revenue dip this quarter due to seasonal factors. On an annual basis, revenue last quarter grew 22.07 percent, the company said. Analysts on average estimated about NT$2.4 trillion increase. Hon Hai, which assembles servers for Nvidia Corp and iPhones for Apple Inc, is expanding its capacity in the US, adding artificial intelligence (AI) server production in Wisconsin and Texas, where it operates established campuses. This
H200 CHIPS: A source said that Nvidia has asked the Taiwanese company to begin production of additional chips and work is expected to start in the second quarter Nvidia Corp is scrambling to meet demand for its H200 artificial intelligence (AI) chips from Chinese technology companies and has approached contract manufacturer Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to ramp up production, sources said. Chinese technology companies have placed orders for more than 2 million H200 chips for this year, while Nvidia holds just 700,000 units in stock, two of the people said. The exact additional volume Nvidia intends to order from TSMC remains unclear, they said. A third source said that Nvidia has asked TSMC to begin production of the additional chips and work is expected to start in the second
US President Donald Trump on Friday blocked US photonics firm HieFo Corp’s US$3 million acquisition of assets in New Jersey-based aerospace and defense specialist Emcore Corp, citing national security and China-related concerns. In an order released by the White House, Trump said HieFo was “controlled by a citizen of the People’s Republic of China” and that its 2024 acquisition of Emcore’s businesses led the US president to believe that it might “take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.” The order did not name the person or detail Trump’s concerns. “The Transaction is hereby prohibited,”
RSS