The military would procure 1,320 domestically produced “Kuai Chi” attack uncrewed surface vessels (USV), which would be funded under a new special defense resilience budget, a source said yesterday.
The Kuai Chi was tested on Tuesday during the annual “Sea and Air Precision Ammunition Firing Exercise” at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County. The drone passed the test following a favorable review of its performance by personnel from the Ministry of National Defense, the army and the navy.
As the Kuai Chi has passed evaluations, it could be presented to the public at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition, which would take place from Sept. 18 to 20, the source said.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
The next step would involve the ministry assigning the Naval Command Headquarters to oversee procurement and mass production of the Kuai Chi for domestic military use, they said, adding that 1,320 of the USVs would be built over five years.
The 1,320 units would be produced and sold to the military in three sets, and each set would be distributed to three divisions, they said.
The three divisions are: the navy’s Coastal Combat Command, which is to be established at the start of next year; the Marine Corps, the force structure of which would be adjusted for the new drone program; and the Army Special Operations Command.
In last week’s test, the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology — which developed the Kuai Chi — tested the new USV in a combat setting involving the integration of multiple uncrewed systems, namely the Kuai Chi itself, the Kuai Chi’s onboard, Ching Feng I (勁蜂1型); FPV suicide drones; and Albatross II (銳鳶二型) uncrewed aerial vehicles, which relayed guidance information to the Kuai Chi.
The live-fire exercise demonstrated how the drones could be used in a joint uncrewed sea-air strike deployment, the source said.
The exercise simulated a complex electronic warfare environment in which the drones were launched from the vessel to jam and suppress enemy close-in defenses. This was followed by drone strikes and the USV itself executing a high-impact explosive suicide attack against dynamic targets, they said, adding that the drone demonstrated precision strike capability and a new form of uncrewed warfare.
In related news, the Executive Yuan on Thursday approved next year’s central government budget, raising total defense spending to NT$949.5 billion (US$31.04 billion), or 3.35 percent of GDP.
While many US-sourced procurements and domestically developed arms programs would be funded under separate special budgets, some key procurements remain in the Ministry of National Defense’s regular fiscal 2026 budget, the sources said.
The regular budget would include funding for the Norwegian National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System; Taiwan’s next-generation frigate program, championed by President William Lai (賴清德); and NT$24.5 billion for the “Zhenhai Project” (震海計畫), which would see the construction of two 2,000-tonne frigates with anti-air and anti-submarine capabilities.
Lai on Friday visited the navy’s 168th fleet in Yilan County and reaffirmed his commitment to the program, saying that it could feature several upgrades, including an increased displacement of 6,500 tonnes.
Additional features would include an active phased-array radar, an advanced combat system, and the Huayang (華陽) vertical launch system, he said, adding that it would be the cornerstone of Taiwan’s future surface combatant fleet.
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