The Taiwanese army earlier this year took delivery of the first of 30 Apache combat helicopters from the US and next month pilots and crew will begin training on the platform, which recently received a new designation from the US Army.
As a result of the significant upgrades made to the AH-64D Block III Apache during its development, the US Army recently decided to re-designate it the E model. To date, 25 AH-64Es have been delivered to the US Army and Taiwan received its first delivery during a low-key handover ceremony at Boeing Co’s Mesa facilities in Arizona in May.
According to Aviation Week, training for Taiwanese pilots and crews is expected to begin next month.
Photo courtesy of Boeing Co.
Following approval by the US government in August of contracts for full production of the helicopter, Boeing is now building four AH-64Es per month for the US Army, which plans to buy a total of 690, and three for foreign military sales (FMS). The US has also notified Congress for the sale of eight AH-64Es to Indonesia, 22 to Qatar and 22 to India, the latter under a non-FMS “hybrid” agreement.
If tests at the Naval Air Station China Lake in California last year are any indication, Taiwan’s AH-64E will be a far more formidable combat helicopter than its predecessors. During the drills, the E model reportedly countered realistic air defense threats and was able to maintain its position, unlike the Block II Apaches, which was “shot down” in similar exercises.
“The Block III absolutely frustrated these folks that operate these [air defense] systems,” Colonel John Lynch, attack helicopter manager at Army Training and Doctrine Command, told Aviation Week.
This was partly due to the aircraft’s ability to operate at lower altitudes and thus evade radar systems arrayed against it.
Part of the Echo model’s advantages are its improved composite main rotor blades, which are 15cm longer than those used on older models, as well as a new tip design and General Electric T700-GE-701D engines, all of which give the aircraft improved aerodynamic performance.
The AH-64Es’ new power-to-weight ratio also makes it safer for operations at low-levels and gives it a performance similar to that of the AH-64A, which was significantly lighter than the AH-64D Block II model, Lynch told Shephard Media, a defense and aerospace publication.
Taiwan’s 30 Apache helicopters, administered under a program named “Sky Eagle,” were included in an October 2008 notification to US Congress for about US$2.5 billion. Full delivery of the multirole attack helicopters is expected to be completed in 2017.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,