The military is to formulate a replacement plan for its aging T-34C basic trainer aircraft, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said today, after one of the decades-old aircraft crashed last week.
Although the T-34C trainers have not yet reached the end of their service life, the Ministry of National Defense is drafting a plan to replace them with new basic trainer aircraft, either through overseas procurement or domestic production, Koo told reporters on the sidelines of a legislative hearing.
Photo: Taipei Times
The final decision would be made before the end of May next year, Koo said.
The ministry hopes to secure funding by 2028 to begin implementing the replacement plan, he added.
Koo's comments came after a two-seat T-34C, carrying 41-year-old Lieutenant Colonel Lu Chi-yu (盧季佑) and 45-year-old Lieutenant Colonel Kuo Chun-nan (過俊男), crashed at Gangshan Air Base (岡山基地) in Kaohsiung early on Tuesday last week, killing both pilots.
The air force has said the cause of the crash is still under investigation.
Neither pilot reported any anomalies or malfunctions during the flight, and weather conditions, including visibility, were suitable for flying, air force Chief Inspector Major General Chiang Yi-cheng (江義誠) told a news conference on Tuesday last week.
The T-34C fleet in Taiwan has been in service for more than 40 years, after 49 were purchased in 1985 for use as basic trainers.
As of today, 40 remain in service.
The air force had previously said that it planned to replace the aircraft with either domestically built or imported trainers, and it estimated that the T-34Cs would be retired starting in 2033.
However, following the crash earlier this month, the ministry has decided accelerate the replacement plan.
Military and local defense industry sources said that the ministry would likely choose to work with local companies rather than purchase trainers from abroad, as there are several domestic aerospace manufacturers that are capable of producing basic trainer aircraft.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
Shih Hsin University President Chen Ching-he (陳清河) yesterday issued a public apology for comments made in his commencement speech last week, stating that he has asked the school to suspend his duties and halt his wages for two months as a show of contrition. At the commencement ceremony on May 30, Chen said, “If you don’t manage your time well, or your own emotions, or your health, then I am telling every one of you — put a quick end to ‘you,’ because the world has no need for ‘you.’” The comments have sparked significant controversy online, and Chen through an open
RSS