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.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
TRAGEDY STRIKES TAIPEI: The suspect died after falling off a building after he threw smoke grenades into Taipei Main Station and went on a killing spree in Zhongshan A 27-year-old suspect allegedly threw smoke grenades in Taipei Main Station and then proceeded to Zhongshan MRT Station in a random killing spree that resulted in the death of the suspect and two other civilians, and seven injured, including one in critical condition, as of press time last night. The suspect, identified as a man surnamed Chang Wen (張文), allegedly began the attack at Taipei Main Station, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that it received a report at 5:24pm that smoke grenades had been thrown in the station. One man in his 50s was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest
ON ALERT: Taiwan’s partners would issue warnings if China attempted to use Interpol to target Taiwanese, and the global body has mechanisms to prevent it, an official said China has stationed two to four people specializing in Taiwan affairs at its embassies in several democratic countries to monitor and harass Taiwanese, actions that the host nations would not tolerate, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. Tsai made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, which asked him and Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) to report on potential conflicts in the Taiwan Strait and military preparedness. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) expressed concern that Beijing has posted personnel from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office to its
‘ILLEGAL RULING’: The KMT and the TPP slammed the Constitutional Court judgement, saying it contravened the law and was trying to clear the way for a ‘green dictatorship’ The Constitutional Court yesterday ruled that amendments to the Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法) passed by the Legislative Yuan last year are unconstitutional, as they contravene due legislative process and separation of powers. The Legislative Yuan on Dec. 20 last year passed amendments stipulating that no fewer than 10 grand justices must take part in deliberations of the Constitutional Court, and at least nine grand justices must agree to declare a law unconstitutional. The Executive Yuan on Jan. 2 requested that lawmakers reconsider the bill, but the Legislative Yuan, under a combined majority of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party
RSS