The indigenous uncrewed combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) Teng Yun 2 has not passed its combat readiness testing phase, with initial results showing its design has room for improvement, a source with knowledge of the matter said yesterday.
Further combat testing would be conducted after making hardware and software changes to improve the drone’s performance, the source said.
The Teng Yun 2 combat and reconnaissance drone, or “Cloud Rider” (騰雲二型), developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, evolved from a first-generation drone that did not meet the military’s needs.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
The second-generation version is a long-endurance, satellite-guided drone that has a new engine as well as an improved and enhanced configuration and flight control system compared with the first-generation prototype.
It is capable of autonomous takeoffs and landings, is equipped with satellite navigation, and can stay in the air for nearly 24 hours, the source said.
The new version completed its first-phase flight tests in March 2022, and the institute trained air force members to use it in January and February last year before it entered combat readiness testing in March.
Initial combat testing results indicated that there was still room for improvement, the source said, adding that efforts to improve the design of the new version are under way and that further tests would be carried out soon.
The combat readiness testing phase is the final hurdle the drone has to clear before it can be manufactured for military use.
Under the Ministry of National Defense’s five-step process for developing weapons, drones need to make it through an initial conceptual design stage, an engineering development stage, initial weapon testing, and combat readiness testing before they can enter mass production.
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
Taiwanese indie band Sunset Rollercoaster and South Korean outfit Hyukoh collectively received the most nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards, earning a total of seven nods from the jury on Wednesday. The bands collaborated on their 2024 album AAA, which received nominations for best band, best album producer, best album design and best vocal album recording. “Young Man,” a single from the album, earned nominations for song of the year and best music video, while another track, “Antenna,” also received a best music video nomination. Late Hong Kong-American singer Khalil Fong (方大同) was named the jury award winner for his 2024 album
Hong Kong singer Eason Chan’s (陳奕迅) concerts in Kaohsiung this weekend have been postponed after he was diagnosed with Covid-19 this morning, the organizer said today. Chan’s “FEAR and DREAMS” concert which was scheduled to be held in the coming three days at the Kaohsiung Arena would be rescheduled to May 29, 30 and 31, while the three shows scheduled over the next weekend, from May 23 to 25, would be held as usual, Universal Music said in a statement. Ticket holders can apply for a full refund or attend the postponed concerts with the same seating, the organizer said. Refund arrangements would
RSS