A Taiwanese-made Indigenous Defense Fighter (IDF) jet went missing near Penghu (澎湖) yesterday morning, the Air Force said yesterday.
Chang Chao-kuei (張朝魁), the political warfare chief of the Air Force’s 427 Wing, told a press conference that the missing warplane took off from the Cingcyuan Gang (清泉崗) air force base at 9:15am and flew toward Penghu as part of a routine training drill.
The IDF conducted a live-fire missile training exercise at a reef area near Penghu, but then disappeared from radar screens near Huayu Island at 9:45am, the official said.
PHOTO: CHAN CHAO-YANG, TAIPEI TIMES
Chang said military search and rescue squads found pilots’ seats, a lifejacket and a helmet from the jet floating in the sea in the area at 1:49pm, indicating that the two pilots had ejected from the aircraft.
Chang said that pilot Captain Ku Chih-pin (古智賓), 29, and co-pilot Captain Chen Chien-ting (陳建廷), 31, were missing, along with the aircraft.
The Air Force immediately dispatched two S-70C helicopters to search for the missing jet, Chang said.
Coast guard units also sent five patrol ships to join the search.
Chang said another two IDF jets that were participating in the drill were recalled following the incident.
The weather conditions in Penghu were good, Chang said.
The Air Force Command said the military would spare no effort in searching for the plane and its pilots, and that a special task force has been formed to investigate the matter.
Chang said Ku and Chen are both married. While Ku had a total of 1,065 hours of flight time, Chen had only 22 hours.
Taiwan began to develop the IDF in 1980, when the US was unwilling to provide it with F-16s.
Taiwan built 130 IDFs with the help of defense firm General Dynamics, which manufactures the F-16.
As the IDFs were designed more than 20 years ago, the Aerospace Industry Development Corp (AIDC) has proposed a NT$7 billion (US$230 million) project to upgrade the aircraft, but the Cabinet has not approved the program.
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