Taiwan is expected to receive six Apache attack helicopters in October, military sources said.
The six AH-64Es will be the first batch of an order of 30 of the most advanced US attack helicopters that the military bought for NT$59.31 billion (US$2.04 billion at current exchange rates) in 2008. The last batch is planned to be delivered before July 2014.
The contract to build the helicopters was awarded to US manufacturer Boeing in October 2010 and the first one came out of the Boeing hangar in Mesa, Arizona, last year in a ceremony presided over by Army Commander General Lee Hsiang-chou (李翔宙).
Pilots and maintenance crew have been sent to the US to learn how to fly and maintain thenew fleet.
The Apache helicopters have played a vital role in US operations in Afghanistan and Iraq and have been upgraded from models A to B, C and D based on the US experience in those theaters.
The model E is the latest and most advanced version.
In addition to its powerful attack capability, the AH-64E can serve as an operations management platform and can control several unmanned drones simultaneously.
According to information provided by Boeing, the model E can carry a maximum load of 10 tonnes and has a maximum speed of 365kph, a cruising speed of 265kph and an effective range of 480km in radius.
The helicopter is virtually an airborne arsenal.
In addition to a 30mm automatic cannon with 1,200 rounds of ammunition, it is armed with 16 Hellfire Missiles and four air-to-air missiles.
It can be fitted with Stinger Missiles, Sidewinder Missiles or TOW Missiles, depending on mission requirements.
It is equipped with a new four-blade rotor that improves the helicopter’s speed and lift ability, with less noise.
The US Army took delivery of its first AH-64E only at the end of 2011, and Taiwan will be the first country other than the US to deploy the helicopter.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
ENHANCING EFFICIENCY: The apron can accommodate 16 airplanes overnight at Taoyuan airport while work on the third runway continues, the transport minister said A new temporary overnight parking apron at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is to start operating on Friday next week to boost operational efficiency while the third runway is being constructed, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The apron — one of the crucial projects in the construction of the third runway — can accommodate 16 aircraft overnight at the nation’s largest international airport, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told reporters while inspecting the new facility yesterday morning. Aside from providing the airport operator with greater flexibility in aircraft parking during the third runway construction,
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
RSS