Part of a package of man-portable air-defense (MANPAD) Stinger missile systems was delivered to Taiwan last year, sources familiar with the issue said yesterday.
Capital defense units, such as the Military Police, the Marine Corps and the army’s special forces units, were prioritized to receive the weapons, which were authorized by the US’ National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to boost Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, the sources said.
The NDAA for the last fiscal year included provisions to provide US$10 billion in grants — US$2 billion over the next five years — for Taiwan to buy US-made weapons.
Photo: Lo Pei-te, Taipei Times
The NDAA also paved the way for 1,000 M240B machine guns, 8,000 sets of combat gear, tethered aerostat radar systems and coastal surface-to-air Harpoon missile systems, the sources said.
While news media have reported that Washington might provide Taiwan with four MQ-9A Reaper drones, the drones need to be paired with real-time ground stations to be 100 percent functional, the sources added.
The M240B guns have a broader range of uses, including on helicopters, combat vehicles, tanks and small boats, they said, adding that Taiwan procured the weapon for use across the military and for the Coast Guard Administration.
The navy has budgeted NT$13.37 billion (US$427.94 million) to purchase 500 additional Stinger missiles, half of which would go to the army and the other half to the Marine Corps or naval vessels, the sources said.
The second batch is expected to be delivered later this year, they said.
A Ministry of National Defense budget showed that Army Command Headquarters has set aside NT$7.26 billion, covering 2019 to next year, for 250 Stinger missiles, 108 gripstock-control groups — which attach to a shoulder-fired guided missile launch tube — and 108 Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) transponders.
Navy Command Headquarters has allotted NT$6.19 billion from 2017 to next year for 250 Stinger missiles, 70 gripstock-control groups and 62 IFF systems.
Department of Strategic Planning director Lee Shih-chiang (李世強) in October last year said that the grip controls for the MANPADs are capable of loading Avenger missiles and missiles used for dual-mounted Stinger systems.
The army ordered the extra grip controls for tactical flexibility, Lee said.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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