The air force yesterday received its first upgraded Lockheed Martin F-16V, the latest variant of the jet, at the Shueishang Airbase in Chiayi County, with three more expected to arrive by the end of the year.
The air force has budgeted NT$129.6 billion (US$4.18 billion) for Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (漢翔航空工業) and US-based Lockheed Martin Corp to upgrade its 143 F-16A/Bs to F-16V standard.
The jet received yesterday had completed hardware and software upgrades in June, and was first spotted by aviation enthusiasts after it began flight tests at the end of August, sources said.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
News at the time drew great concern from the Ministry of National Defense and the US, sources said, adding that a full-scale investigation of intelligence and counter-espionage systems were launched to identify the leak.
The air force said it expects that the upgrades would complete outfitting 20 to 24 jets per year until 2022.
Most of the F-16V jets would be repainted and their markings would be refurbished in Shueishang and at the Sincheng Airbase in Hualien County after they arrive to prevent spies from identifying which planes have been upgraded, the air force said.
Since the purchase of 150 F-16A/B jets in 1992, the plane has become the air force’s primary fighter in terms of air-to-air, air-to-sea and air-to-surface defenses.
With the growing disparity of air forces on either side of the Taiwan Strait, the US in 2011 agreed to upgrade Taiwan’s F-16s to one of the most advanced variants of the F-16 family, sources said.
Outfitted with an AN/APG-83 active electronically scanned array and a new modular mission computer, the F-16V has an improved radar detection range and multi-target engagement capability, the ministry said.
The fighters are to have a helmet-mounted cue system linked to AIM-9X Sidewinder heat-seeking missiles, giving pilots the ability to “see and shoot,” it said.
Other advanced weapons the F-16Vs are to carry include the AGM-154C joint standoff weapon — or glide bomb — and AGM-88B high-speed anti-radiation missiles, it added.
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began talks with high-ranking Chinese officials in Switzerland yesterday aiming to de-escalate a dispute that threatens to cut off trade between the world’s two biggest economies and damage the global economy. The US delegation has begun meetings in Geneva with a Chinese delegation led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), Xinhua News Agency said. Diplomats from both sides also confirmed that the talks have begun, but spoke anonymously and the exact location of the talks was not made public. Prospects for a major breakthrough appear dim, but there is
The number of births in Taiwan fell to an all-time monthly low last month, while the population declined for the 16th consecutive month, Ministry of the Interior data released on Friday showed. The number of newborns totaled 8,684, which is 704 births fewer than in March and the lowest monthly figure on record, the ministry said. That is equivalent to roughly one baby born every five minutes and an annual crude birthrate of 4.52 per 1,000 people, the ministry added. Meanwhile, 17,205 deaths were recorded, resulting in a natural population decrease of 8,521, the data showed. More people are also leaving Taiwan, with net
RSS