Two air force officers sustained minor injuries yesterday when two AT-3 trainer planes belonging to the Taiwanese Air Force Academy collided in Pingtung County, firefighters said later yesterday.
The firefighters said the two men were rushed to hospital for treatment. One sustained bone fractures, while the other injured his hand.
The Air Force Academy said the training craft took off from Gangshan (岡山), Greater Kaohsiung, at 3:10pm for a routine training mission and one crashed in Fangliao (枋寮), Pingtung County, at 4:25pm.
The second plane, which was also carrying two pilots, returned to base safely, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.
The pilots of the downed jet managed to eject before it crashed. They parachuted to the ground with minor injuries and were rushed to a local hospital, the ministry said.
The academy identified the two officers as First Lieutenant Tseng Kuo-wei (曾國維) and Lieutenant Colonel Chang Kuo-chiang (張國強).
Fifty-six-year-old farmer Huang Shui-lin (黃水霖) said he was riding on his scooter nearby when he saw a man lying by the roadside and another about 50m away in a thicket.
He called 119 as he helped one of the men out of his parachute gear, Huang added.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, the academy said.
The crash and similar incidents in the past have sparked calls for the US to sell the nation new planes to replace its aging fleet.
Taipei applied in 2007 to buy 66 F-16C/D jets, which have better radars and more powerful weapons systems than the F-16A/Bs currently in use, as a response to China’s growing military muscle.
However, Washington last year announced that it would help the nation upgrade its existing F-16A/Bs rather than sell it the more up to date jets.
Additional reporting by staff writer
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday appealed to the authorities to release former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) from pretrial detention amid conflicting reports about his health. The TPP at a news conference on Thursday said that Ko should be released to a hospital for treatment, adding that he has blood in his urine and had spells of pain and nausea followed by vomiting over the past three months. Hsieh Yen-yau (謝炎堯), a retired professor of internal medicine and Ko’s former teacher, said that Ko’s symptoms aligned with gallstones, kidney inflammation and potentially dangerous heart conditions. Ko, charged with
RSS