The military is planning to recategorize military drones as “consumables/munitions,” rather than as aircraft, to speed up the procurement process, the army said yesterday.
The Army Command Headquarters said the decision was made because drones, like munitions, need to be rapidly replaced, and thus should be categorized as consumables/munitions “to meet the army’s practical needs.”
The headquarters’ confirmation came after the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) early yesterday reported that the army was about to make the classification change based on the example of the US, which is Taiwan’s biggest arms provider.
Photo: Liu Yu-chieh, Taipei Times
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced a new drone policy last month that would treat some types of smaller uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) as “consumables,” not durable property, as they are more akin to hand grenades and other kinds of ammunition than aircraft.
Lower-level commanders would also be able to procure smaller drones directly, as well as authorize subordinates to operate them, according to the US plan.
The Liberty Times quoted an unnamed source as saying that, by listing UAS as munitions, Taiwan’s military would significantly streamline the procurement process, and making it faster for them to receive and use drones.
Group 1 and Group 2 UASs would be “accounted for as consumable commodities, not durable property,” according to a memo on the US policy change released by Hegseth.
The Pentagon classifies Group 1 drones as weighing up to 9kg, that can fly up to an altitude of 365.8m and can reach speeds of up to 100 knots (185.2kph).
Group 2 drones weigh between 9.5kg and 25kg, can reach an altitude of 1,067m, and hit top speeds of up to 250 knots (463kph), according to US media reports.
Asked about the army’s latest policy change, Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a division director at the military-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research, yesterday said the policy change would speed up and make drone procurement more flexible for the armed forces.
It would also allow the military to work closely with private drone makers and have a large number of drones produced faster to meet the need for drones in modern warfare.
The plan also shows that the armed forces are changing their mindset and are becoming more open to cooperation with the private sector, Su said.
Taiwan needs as many drones as possible, he said, citing the example of the Ukraine-Russia war.
Ukraine is producing about 3 million drones per year to defend itself against Russia, as smaller drones only have a penetration rate of 10 percent, meaning that only 10 percent of them reach their designated targets, Su said.
That is why Taiwan needs to boost its drone production capabilities as soon as possible to defend against a potential Chinese invasion, he said.
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