Nineteen Chinese military aircraft, including fighter jets, yesterday flew into Taiwan’s southwestern air defense identification zone (ADIZ), the fourth time this month, the Ministry of National Defense said.
The intruding People’s Liberation Army (PLA) planes were 10 J-16 multirole fighters, four H-6 bombers, four SU-30 fighters and one Y-8 marine patrol aircraft, a report released by the ministry said.
PRATAS ISLANDS
All of the aircraft were spotted southwest of Taiwan, between Taiwan and the Taiwanese-held Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), a chart in the report showed.
While not considered territorial airspace, it is part of Taiwan’s ADIZ, an area declared by a country to allow it to identify, locate and control approaching foreign aircraft.
The air force responded by scrambling aircraft to monitor the Chinese planes, issuing radio warnings and mobilizing air defense assets, the ministry said.
Since the ministry started publishing incursions of Chinese aircraft on Sept. 17 last year, the highest number to enter Taiwan’s ADIZ was 28 planes on June 15, two days after the G7 highlighted the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
TANK TRAINING AREAS
Next year, the armed forces plan to construct two tank training facilities in Hsinchu County, as the US is to deliver 108 M1A2T Abrams tanks from 2024 to 2026, the ministry’s budget plan shows.
The army has about 1,000 tanks, including the CM-11 Brave Tiger and M60A3 tanks, which have been in use for more than 20 years.
The military has allocated a budget of NT$40.5 billion (US$1.46 billion) from 2019 to 2027 to purchase the 108 tanks, which are expected to be assigned to the Sixth Army Corps in northern Taiwan.
Thirty-eight of the tanks are to be delivered in 2024, 42 in 2025 and 28 in 2026.
According to the budget proposal, which has been submitted to the Legislative Yuan for review, NT$4.39 billion is to be allocated for the production of military equipment and the construction of facilities related to operating the new tanks.
The army proposed a budget of NT$450.79 million to build training facilities at the army base in Hsinchu’s Hukou Township (湖口) and NT$1.19 billion at the base in Sinfeng Township (新豐).
Construction of the planned tank driving courses and firing ranges is to begin next year, the budget proposal said.
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
INDUSTRY: Beijing’s latest export measures go beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related tech, an academic said Taiwanese industries could face significant disruption from China’s newly tightened export controls on rare earth elements, as much of Taiwan’s supply indirectly depends on Chinese materials processed in Japan, a local expert said yesterday. Kristy Hsu (徐遵慈), director of the Taiwan ASEAN Studies Center at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research, said that China’s latest export measures go far beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related technologies. With Japan and Southeast Asian countries among those expected to be hit, Taiwan could feel the impact through its reliance on Japanese-made semi-finished products and
RSS