Thirteen Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone from 6am on Thursday to 6am yesterday, including a drone that almost circumnavigated Taiwan proper, the Ministry of National Defense said.
Flight path information released by the ministry showed the CH-4 drone flying clockwise off the northern coast of Taiwan then traveling south. It was not shown flying northward to the west of the nation.
It was the third instance that Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) drones have been detected on the eastern boundary of Taiwan’s air defense zone after drones were spotted on April 28 and May 3 on slightly different flight paths, the ministry said.
Photo: Reuters
An air defense identification zone is a region beyond a country’s territorial airspace, within which identification, location and air traffic control is required by a country for national security purposes.
The CH-4 “Rainbow” is an 8.5m-long, 18m wide reconnaissance and combat drone that China claims can fire air-to-ground missiles and fly at an altitude of 5,000m, making it difficult to bring down with standard anti-aircraft weapons.
The other PLA aircraft that entered Taiwan’s zone between 6am on Thursday and 6am yesterday were two other drones — a TB-001 and a BZK-005 — two Su-30s, six J-10s and one J-16, which are all fighter jets, and a Y-8 electronic warfare aircraft, the ministry said.
All of them, except the Y-8 and J-16, crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, while the J-10s and Su-30s remained close to the line before turning back, the flight paths showed.
The TB-001 and BZK-005 drones flew to the south and southeast in a counterclockwise direction relative to Taiwan, the flight data showed.
In addition to the aircraft that entered the zone, 19 other PLA planes and four vessels were detected in the region during the 24-hour period, the ministry said.
Taiwan dispatched aircraft and vessels to shadow the Chinese craft and locked onto them with land-based missiles, it said.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
RSS