The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday sentenced three naval officers to prison terms ranging from 14 months to two years over the mistaken launch of a missile that killed a fishing boat captain and injured three others in waters off Penghu County last year.
The officers were convicted on charges of causing death by negligence, the court said in its ruling.
Petty Officer Second Class Kao Chia-chun (高嘉駿), who fired the Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missile on July 1 last year, was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Photo: Huang Chien-hua, Taipei Times
Kao’s supervisor, Chief Petty Officer Chen Ming-hsiu (陳銘修), was sentenced to two years, while Lieutenant Junior Grade Hsu Po-wei (許博為), who was in charge of weapons on the Chinchiang-class corvette, was jailed for 14 months.
The locally developed missile was mistakenly launched from the corvette docked at a naval base in Kaohsiung during what was supposed to be a simulated test.
The missile traveled northwest and ripped through the fishing boat Hsiang Li Sheng 40 nautical miles (74km) off Penghu, killing its captain, Huang Wen-chung (黃文忠), and injuring Huang’s son and two migrant workers on board.
On the morning of July 1, Chen requested four “fuse” safety connectors from Hsu to simulate a missile launch, the court said.
Hsu agreed to Chen’s request, even though he should have known that only two of the Hsiung Feng III missiles on the corvette had test and training sets (TTS) installed and only two safety connectors were needed for the test, it said.
After obtaining the connectors, Chen ordered his subordinates to link them to the four Hsiung Feng III missiles, even though he knew that two of the missiles did not have TTS on them, the court added.
After completing a missile circuit test, Chen did not notice that the missile control system was set to “combat mode” instead of “training mode,” it said.
He then left the war room for five to seven minutes, leaving Kao alone in the room simulating the missile launch procedure, it added.
Kao did not notice that two of the missiles were in “live-fire” mode and pressed the launch button for the No. 3 missile, the court said.
The missile traveled for about two minutes before reaching waters near Penghu, where it automatically searched for a target and ripped through the fishing boat.
Kao admitted to his negligence after the incident, while Chen and Hsu denied any wrongdoing, the court said in its verdict.
When asked why Kao received a lighter sentence, judge Yeh Wen-po (葉文博) said the degree of Chen’s negligence was more severe and he has refused to admit any wrongdoing, leading to the heavier sentence.
Huang Wen-chung’s family received state compensation of more than NT$30 million (US$989,936 at the current exchange rate) following the incident and reached a settlement with the Ministry of National Defense.
The Navy Command Headquarters yesterday released a statement saying that it respects the court’s ruling and would provide legal assistance to the officers.
Kao’s lawyer said Kao will decide whether to appeal after receiving the official verdict.
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
DEFENSIVE EDGE: The liaison officer would work with Taiwan on drones and military applications for other civilian-developed technologies, a source said A Pentagon unit tasked with facilitating the US military’s adoption of new technology is soon to deploy officials to dozens of friendly nations, including Taiwan, the Financial Times reported yesterday. The US Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) is to send a representative to collaborate with Taiwan on drones and military applications from the semiconductor industry by the end of the year, the British daily reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “Drones will certainly be a focus, but they will also be looking at connecting to the broader civilian and dual-use ecosystem, including the tech sector,” one source was
RSS