An array of performances was held yesterday in front of the Presidential Office building in Taipei to mark the Republic of China’s (ROC) National Day, including the largest-ever ROC national flag flyby with two 18m wide and 12m long flags, each carried by a CH-47 Chinook helicopter.
National flags used in past Double Ten National Day flybys measured 12m by 8m, the military said.
A total of 48 military aircraft of 12 types took part in flights over the capital.
Photo: CNA
They included AH-64E, AH-1W and UH-60M helicopters, as well as F-16Vs, Mirage-2000s and domestically made Indigenous Defense Fighters, the military said.
On the ground, a parade to showcase the military’s capability to defend Taiwan was held — featuring the nation’s major missile systems, including domestically made Hsiung Feng III and Hsiung Feng II anti-ship missiles, as well as Tien Kung III surface-to-air missiles.
The most noteworthy weapon system on display was the land-based versions of the Tien Chien II surface-to-air missile, which was displayed in truck-mounted sealed container-launchers.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
For the parade’s grand finale, five jet trainers of the air force’s Thunder Tiger Aerobatics Team released plumes of blue, red and white smoke, representing the colors of the national flag.
Many viewers noted that this year’s festivities also featured popular songs, in addition to the traditional military marches.
Golden Melody Award winners — including Your Legend (將軍令) by Mayday, Happy Ganjaman (快樂的甘蔗人) by Leo Wang (Leo王) and Thank You (感謝) by Abao (阿爆), winner of last year’s Song of the Year — were among the featured songs.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kung, Taipei Times
The organizers said that the more contemporary choice of music was intended to make the ceremony more lively and relatable, adding that all featured artists had given their consent.
The performances were followed by a street parade honoring the nation’s Olympic and Paralympic athletes, as well as COVID-19 responders and rescue teams.
Weightlifter Kuo Hsing-chun (郭婞淳), who won a gold medal and set three Olympic records at the Tokyo Olympics this summer, served as grand marshal, drawing a warm welcome from the crowd.
Photo: Bloomberg
The athletes were joined by their coaches, all of whom carried national flags.
The General Assembly of Chinese Culture, one of the organizers, said that the parade aimed to honor the nation’s unsung heroes, including healthcare workers, disaster response teams, police officers, military personnel and firefighters.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
Photo: CNA
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
Fast food chain McDonald's is to raise prices by up to NT$5 on some products at its restaurants across Taiwan, starting on Wednesday next week, the company announced today. The prices of all extra value meals and sharing boxes are to increase by NT$5, while breakfast combos and creamy corn soup would go up by NT$3, the company said in a statement. The price of the main items of those meals, if ordered individually, would remain the same. Meanwhile, the price of a medium-sized lemon iced tea and hot cappuccino would rise by NT$3, extra dipping sauces for chicken nuggets would go up
Yangmingshan National Park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) nature area has gone viral after a park livestream camera observed a couple in the throes of intimate congress, which was broadcast live on YouTube, drawing large late-night crowds and sparking a backlash over noise, bright lights and disruption to wildlife habitat. The area’s livestream footage appeared to show a couple engaging in sexual activity on a picnic table in the park on Friday last week, with the uncensored footage streamed publicly online. The footage quickly spread across social media, prompting a tide of visitors to travel to the site to “check in” and recreate the
Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-ching (林宜敬) yesterday cited regulatory issues and national security concerns as an expert said that Taiwan is among the few Asian regions without Starlink. Lin made the remarks on Facebook after funP Innovation Group chief executive officer Nathan Chiu (邱繼弘) on Friday said Taiwan and four other countries in Asia — China, North Korea, Afghanistan and Syria — have no access to Starlink. Starlink has become available in 166 countries worldwide, including Ukraine, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, in the six years since it became commercial, he said. While China and North Korea block Starlink, Syria is not
RSS