Local drone producers are seeking to upgrade uncrewed aerial vehicles in Taiwan’s arsenal to bolster the nation’s defenses.
JC Tech, based in Taipei’s Neihu Science Park (內湖科技園區), started developing drones in 2018 in cooperation with two other companies to help the coast guard build a fleet of single-rotor drones.
JC Tech president Robert Cheng (鄭志誠) said his company has built and tested prototypes of a suicide drone, named the Flyingfish, that was inspired by the US-made Switchblade drones used in Ukraine.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
JC Tech expects to sign the first contract for the drones with a Southeast Asian country next month and hopes to also work with Taiwan’s military.
The drone comes in three sizes, with the medium-sized Flyingfish 200 boasting a payload of 500g, roughly equivalent to 10 grenades, he said.
Made of a plastic-like material, the Flyingfish 200 is 1.15m long, but weighs only 2.2kg fully loaded, making it an ideal weapon for infantry to carry into battle, Cheng said.
It can target tanks, ships or personnel within a 10km range with the help of built-in GPS, artificial intelligence and a camera, he said.
Once it has identified its target, it swoops down and crashes into it, detonating its payload, he added.
Costing less than US$3,000, the Flyingfish 200 is much cheaper than cruise missiles or other combat drones, making it cost-effective to deploy in large numbers in urban or naval warfare, Cheng said.
“When the enemy approaches [Taiwan’s] coastal waters, the Flyingfish drones will prove to be a formidable weapon for asymmetric warfare, because they are so easy to use and can be deployed in great numbers,” he said.
Geosat Aerospace & Technology Inc, which began developing drones in 2008, has been collaborating with the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology on the Albatross II drone.
The Albatross II is an updated version of the first-generation Albatross being used by Taiwan’s military.
An Albatross drone filmed a standoff between Taiwan’s guided-missile destroyer Ma Kong and the Chinese frigate Ma’anshan during China’s live-fire military exercises around Taiwan early last month.
With drone technology advancing rapidly, Taiwan’s military felt the need to upgrade its Albatross drones, a task it entrusted to the institute, Geosat CEO Lo Cheng-fang (羅正方) said.
As drones could have a more prominent role in military standoffs between Taiwan and China, the nation should adopt a “porcupine” strategy by complementing its missile defense network with combat drones, Lo said.
The Albatross II would fit the bill, he added.
It has surveillance and combat functions, improved flight endurance, better communications and a bigger payload, Lo said.
It has a range of 250km, compared with its predecessor’s 150km, he said.
The Albatross II has a longer communication range and can transmit data via microwave transmission or satellites, which would be useful if China were to blockade Taiwan, because it could transmit real-time data on enemy movements, Lo said.
Another major improvement is that the new drone has a synthetic aperture radar, which enables it to conduct surveillance over a wider range with less interference from limited light or poor weather conditions, he said.
Lo said the Albatross II is compatible with locally developed Tien Chien II (Sky Sword) air-to-air missiles and 2.75-inch rockets, and could outperform Turkey’s Bayraktar TB2 drones, which saw widespread use by Ukrainian forces during Russia’s invasion of the eastern European country.
The Albatross II has a wider wingspan, a higher-output engine and higher-torque propellers than the Turkish drone, he said.
Lo did not divulge when the Albatross II drones might enter service, but said that with tests proceeding on schedule, they could enter mass production next year.
EVA Airways was ranked the eighth-best airline in the world for this year, the only Taiwanese carrier to make it into the top 25 Airline Excellence Awards this year, aviation reviews Web site AirlineRatings.com said on Wednesday. AirlineRatings.com has a seven-star rating system to evaluate more than 360 airlines around the world every year, EVA Airways said in a statement on Thursday. “We are delighted that efforts by the entire EVA staff have been recognized by Airline Ratings,” EVA Airways president Clay Sun (孫嘉明) said in the release. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company identified and adopted services and procedures that enhance and
A promotional event for the launch of a drinks store led to police questioning a 26-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), the Taichung Police Department said yesterday. Police said that they questioned Chang and forwarded the case to prosecutors, accusing her of producing, distributing, broadcasting or selling pornography. Police said she faces charges related to the alleged distribution of indecent photographs on Twitter and using overtly sexual innuendos to promote the store on Monday night. Officers stumbled upon the content during a routine Internet “patrol.” Chang faces a prison sentence of up to two years and up to a NT$90,000 fine if found guilty
Exiled Chinese democracy advocate Wang Dan (王丹) yesterday denied an accusation by former Taiwanese political worker Lee Yuan-chun (李援軍) that Wang had sexually harassed him in a hotel room in New York nine years ago. There was a huge gap between Lee’s accusation and his own understanding and memory, Wang wrote on Facebook, adding it was hard for him to respond further regarding a “unilateral description” made by someone else. Wang made the remarks after his initial response on Facebook was met with criticism, with people saying he did not directly address the allegation. Lee on Friday wrote on Facebook that he
MORE WARNINGS: If the US company does not clarify and solve issues with its frozen berries, the FDA might extend an import suspension implemented last month, it said The Kaohsiung Department of Health yesterday said it fined Costco NT$4.5 million (US$146,265) over contaminated frozen strawberries, while the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that although the US company had filed an improvement plan, an import suspension on frozen berries could remain. Three types of frozen berry products imported and sold by Costco have tested positive for the hepatitis A virus since April. The Kaohsiung health department previously fined Costco NT$300,000 for not providing the sales list of a contaminated batch of Kirkland Signature Three Berry Blend imported from Chile, in contravention of the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法). It later
RSS