The Ministry of National Defense will hold a commissioning ceremony next month for the 12 aircraft acquired from the US to boost the nation’s marine patrol warfare capabilities, the air force said yesterday.
The air force said it has taken full delivery of 12 P-3C Orion aircraft, which are equipped with torpedoes and depth bombs designed to sink fast, deep-diving nuclear submarines and high-performance surface ships.
The 12 US-made P-3Cs will replace a fleet of 11 S-2T aircraft that has been in service for more than 40 years, the air force said.
The 12 aircraft, along with equipment and services, were procured in 2007 for US$1.9 billion, after a six-year delay that stemmed from legislative infighting.
The P-3Cs will play an essential role in defending the nation against China, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.
In view of the rapid pace of China’s naval modernization and expansion, Taiwan’s military has been working to bolster its undersea warfare capabilities and its marine patrol efforts, which utilize surface warships, aircraft, or submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines.
The P-3C Orion is a four-engine turboprop marine patrol aircraft with multi-mission capabilities. It is equipped with advanced submarine detection sensors and an integrated avionics system and carries a mixed payload of weapons internally and on its wings.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
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