Classroom training has begun for the first batch of US-made M1A2T Abrams tanks that arrived in Taiwan in December last year, a military source said yesterday, adding that they could begin combat preparations in the second half of the year.
On Dec. 16, 38 M1A2T Abrams tanks and four M88A2 armored recovery vehicles arrived at the Port of Taipei before being transported to the Armor Training Command in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口).
Prior to the tanks’ arrival, Taiwanese instructors training in the US returned in November last year to draft teaching materials, military officials said.
Photo: Military News Agency via EPA-EFE
A source told reporters that replacement training has already begun with the new tanks and combat service scheduled for the second half of this year, although plans are not yet finalized.
Before fielding the tanks, the army would hold assessments followed by a training period and further evaluations, the source said.
The M1A2T is a next-generation tank equipped with modern battlefield functions such as a computer fire control system, they said.
Most aspects of the M1A2T, such as performance characteristics, maintenance needs and safety regulations, require retraining even for soldiers familiar with the CM-11 or M60A3 tanks, the source said.
As such, classroom training would be the primary focus, rather than tank operation, they added.
To avoid delays in training, a new tank proving ground in Hsinchu County’s Kengzihkou (坑子口) is being constructed in stages and is ready for the new tanks, the army said in a news release last year.
The upgrades to the training facility include a new multiuse shooting range to enable operators of the M1A2T Abrams tanks to practice firing at night and while moving, a range extension to 1.8km from 1.34km and new target platforms that can move automatically.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
Taiwan is awaiting official notification from the US regarding the status of the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) after the US Supreme Court ruled US President Donald Trump's global tariffs unconstitutional. Speaking to reporters before a legislative hearing today, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said that Taiwan's negotiation team remains focused on ensuring that the bilateral trade deal remains intact despite the legal challenge to Trump's tariff policy. "The US has pledged to notify its trade partners once the subsequent administrative and legal processes are finalized, and that certainly includes Taiwan," Cho said when asked about opposition parties’ doubts that the ART was
If China chose to invade Taiwan tomorrow, it would only have to sever three undersea fiber-optic cable clusters to cause a data blackout, Jason Hsu (許毓仁), a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator, told a US security panel yesterday. In a Taiwan contingency, cable disruption would be one of the earliest preinvasion actions and the signal that escalation had begun, he said, adding that Taiwan’s current cable repair capabilities are insufficient. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) yesterday held a hearing on US-China Competition Under the Sea, with Hsu speaking on
RSS