The air force's Chihhang base in Taitung County has completed a replacement of its air combat maneuvering instrumentation (ACMI) system to facilitate manpower training, a military spokesman said yesterday.
The ACMI is the most powerful state-of-the-art training aid for combat crews, the spokesman said, adding that the newly installed ACMI is equipped with a global positioning system that enables pilots to share intelligence and combat information with their US counterparts.
The ACMI is a computerized three-dimensional tracking and recording system that provides safety for air crews training in aerial combat, air-to-ground weapon delivery, surface-to-air defenses and electronic warfare.
With US assistance, the Chihhang air base installed its first ACMI system in July 1988. However, the equipment has since become obsolete as China has acquired more advanced warplanes, including Russian-made Su-27 and Su-30 jet fighters, while Taiwan has also commissioned a new generation of warplanes into service.
The Chihhang air base decided to renew its ACMI to meet the new requirements in crew training and monitoring of the Taiwan Strait security situation, the spokesman said.
While the old system could only monitor air space off the coast of Taitung, the spokesman went on, the new equipment can cover all the air space surrounding Taiwan.
If a conflict erupts in the Taiwan Strait, the spokesman continued, the military's ground control and command center will be able to guide its air crews into combat against enemy planes and to share combat information with US military authorities.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
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