The army yesterday officially commissioned its UH-60M Black Hawk combat team after verifying the fleet’s initial combat capability.
The team from the 602nd Air Cavalry Brigade under the Aviation and Special Forces Command has 26 Black Hawk utility helicopters that the army bought from the US.
The helicopters are known for their adaptability to different combat environments and are capable of conducting airstrikes, carrying out logistics and rescue missions, and conducting airborne command operations, the army said in a statement.
Photo: CNA, courtesy of the Military News Agency
The team will be trained to master aviation and maintenance skills to bolster the army’s combat capabilities, and it forms a powerful security shield in the Taiwan Strait, the army said.
The 26 helicopters are among 60 Black Hawk helicopters ordered by the army at a cost of US$84.67 billion to replace its aging UH-1H Huey utility helicopters.
The army said it has taken delivery of 32 of helicopters so far, with six going to the National Airborne Service Corps.
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) designated 15 of the advanced helicopters for the corps when he was in office.
The remaining 28 helicopters are to be delivered in partial shipments by 2020, the army said, with some of them expected to go to the air force.
Minister of National Defense Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬) last year said that 15 Black Hawks would be given to the air force to replace S-70C helicopters that have been in service for 30 years.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a