DEFENSE
Missile in live-fire test
An air-launched variant of the Hsiung Feng III supersonic anti-ship missile has completed its first live-fire test after being mounted on an Indigenous Defense Fighter, an air force source said yesterday. The missile, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, was test-fired on Thursday as part of efforts to enhance the nation’s air combat capabilities, the source said. If subsequent tests continue to meet performance requirements, the program would advance to service-level operational evaluation, the stage before mass production, they said. Photographs and texts posted on Thursday on a military-focused Facebook page showed a single-seater IDF with the tail number 1490 carrying a missile on its right wing. A positioning pod used for testing purposes was mounted on the wingtip. An air force official later confirmed that the test was part of the air-launched missile program, codenamed the Hsiung Chi (Brave Raptor) program, to enhance Taiwan’s air combat capabilities.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
POLITICS
Legislative session extended
The opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their combined legislative majority yesterday to vote to extend the Legislative Yuan session until Jan. 31 next year. The two opposition parties, which together control 62 of the legislature’s 113 seats, outvoted Democratic Progressive Party lawmakers 59-49 to extend the session. The legislature meets in two regular sessions each year — from February to the end of May and from September to the end of December.
TRANSPORTATION
Bus crash injures three
An accident in Taipei involving four buses yesterday caused minor injuries to three passengers, the Taipei Fire Department said. The department said that it received a report at about 1pm that a traffic accident had occurred in the southbound bus lane on Dunhua N Road near Bade Road in Taipei. The Taipei Public Transportation Office said that an initial assessment indicated that one of the bus drivers failed to pay attention while pulling into a bus stop on Dunhua N Road. As a result, he drove into a stationary bus in front of him, which then ran into another bus, which rear-ended a fourth bus, it said. The three passengers who sustained minor abrasions were all on the bus that initiated the collision, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that the victims were a 53-year-old woman who injured her knees, a 40-year-old man who sustained a mouth injury and a 25-year-old who injured a calf muscle. None of the bus drivers tested positive for alcohol, police said. The collision likely resulted from the brakes of the bus failing, police added.
ENTERTAINMENT
Kara to headline countdown
Five-member South Korean girl group Kara are to be the headline act of Taipei’s New Year countdown celebrations, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Besides the South Korean group, other international acts are to include Singaporean singer-songwriter Tanya Chua (蔡健雅), six-member South Korean-Taiwanese girl group Genblue and South Korean-Taiwanese singer-songwriter Bii, the department said. A total of 10 acts are to take to the stage outside Taipei City Hall starting at 7pm on Dec. 31. Kara’s performance would be the first in Taiwan for 12 years. Taipei is also to host performances on Dec. 31 at four other locations — Dinghao Square on Zhongxiao E Road, Jingqin No. 1 Park, Xiangshan Park and Four Four South Village.
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
STEERING FAILURE: The first boat of its class is experiencing teething issues as it readies for acceptance by the navy, according to a recent story about rudder failure The Hai Kun (海鯤), the nation’s first locally built submarine, allegedly suffered a total failure of stern hydraulic systems during the second round of sea acceptance trials on June 26, and sailors were forced to manually operate the X-rudder to turn the submarine and return to port, news Web site Mirror Daily reported yesterday. The report said that tugboats following the Hai Kun assisted the submarine in avoiding collisions with other ships due to the X-rudder malfunctioning. At the time of the report, the submarine had completed its trials and was scheduled to begin diving and surfacing tests in shallow areas. The X-rudder,
DEMAND: The government should enact regulations in line with Austria and Germany to incorporate vegan nutrition into school meals, an advocate said More than 1,000 people yesterday marched in Taipei to promote veganism, calling for legislation to incorporate vegan diets into school lunches and the national net zero emissions program. Participants gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office Building for the march, which was organized by the Vegan Action Network (VAN). Former ambassador to Chad Chiu Chung-jen (邱仲仁), actor Yankee Yang (楊子儀) and actress Cindy Lien (連俞涵) attended the event. VAN member Marianne Chao (趙梅君) said that the campaign aimed to urge the government to promote vegan diets across schools and government agencies via legislation and national policies, which would help build
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