Minister of National Defense Kao Hua-chu (高華柱) apologized yesterday for the crashes of two air force fighter jets within five days of each other earlier this month, but added that pilots need public support to regain their confidence as soon as possible.
Kao was responding to questions from lawmakers about the availability of the nation’s air arsenal after the crashes of an F-16 and a Mirage 2000-5.
“I’m more than willing to offer an apology to the public for the mishaps and will assume full political responsibility for them,” Kao told lawmakers.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
He said the most important thing is to ascertain the cause of the crashes.
“Special task forces have been formed to investigate each crash,” Kao said, adding that the early signs show mechanical failure to be the most likely cause of the accidents.
On May 15, a single-seater F-16 of the 455th Tactical Fighter Wing crashed into waters southwest of Chiayi. Its 26-year-old pilot managed to eject to safety.
The other incident involved a twin-seater Mirage 2000-5 belonging to the 499th Tactical Fighter Wing based in Hsinchu, which crashed off the western coast shortly after takeoff on May 20. Again, its two pilots were able to bail out safely.
Despite the crashes, Kao assured lawmakers that all Air Force aircraft on active duty are in good and serviceable condition.
“The availability rate of our air arsenal for active service meets the nation’s requirements,” Kao said.
US-built F-16s, French-made Mirage 2000-5s and locally developed Ching-kuo IDF jets form the backbone of the nation’s air defenses.
Asked about progress of the military’s plan to procure new warplanes that would constitute a third generation of aircraft for the Air Force, Kao said the procurement of US-built F-35 jets is a long-term target.
“Before this goal is realized, we have other projects to complete to meet our defense needs,” Kao said.
Previous media reports have said Taiwan is looking to buy an F-35 variant with short takeoff and vertical-land capabilities.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
RSS