The air force yesterday established the Republic of China (ROC) Air Force Air Defense and Missile Command to better coordinate air defense operations.
Speaking at the formal establishment of the command at Tainan Air Force Base, Air Force Commander General Shen Yi-ming (沈一鳴) said the new command, which combines the Air Defense Artillery and Air Defense Missile commands, will allow the air force to better coordinate air defense command and control.
The new command, led by former air force command chief of staff Fan Ta-wei (范大維), eliminates overlap between different commands within the air force, thereby enhancing operational efficiency, Shen said.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
The new command has also shuffled personnel from the original two commands to establish five air defense brigades based on the needs of different combat zones.
The new command has control over a variety of air defense equipment, including the MIM-104 Patriot missile system radar, anti-tactical ballistic and AIM-7 Sparrow missile launchers, MIM-23 Hawk missiles and the Skyguard radar system.
In related news, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Thursday reiterated her administration’s commitment to increasing military spending and enhance combat preparedness so that the nation can continue to develop in an environment of peace and stability.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
Next year’s defense budget would be increased, Tsai said at a ceremony at the Ministry of National Defense, adding that the increase would provide more support to all branches of the military, especially those in remote areas.
The nation’s armed forces remain eternally vigilant even during peacetime and are well-aware of external military threats, Tsai said.
She acknowledged the ministry for improvements in combat training, military base infrastructure and equipment over the past year.
The ceremony honored 139 armed forces personnel, seven of whom were women, the largest number of female honorees in the nation’s history.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
Taiwanese celebrities Hank Chen (陳漢典) and Lulu Huang (黃路梓茵) announced yesterday that they are planning to marry. Huang announced and posted photos of their engagement to her social media pages yesterday morning, joking that the pair were not just doing marketing for a new show, but “really getting married.” “We’ve decided to spend all of our future happy and hilarious moments together,” she wrote. The announcement, which was later confirmed by the talent agency they share, appeared to come as a surprise even to those around them, with veteran TV host Jacky Wu (吳宗憲) saying he was “totally taken aback” by the news. Huang,
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) put Taiwan in danger, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) said yesterday, hours after the de facto US embassy said that Beijing had misinterpreted World War II-era documents to isolate Taiwan. The AIT’s comments harmed the Republic of China’s (ROC) national interests and contradicted a part of the “six assurances” stipulating that the US would not change its official position on Taiwan’s sovereignty, Hsiao said. The “six assurances,” which were given by then-US president Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982, say that Washington would not set a date for ending arm sales to Taiwan, consult
RSS