The first of a batch of marine patrol aircraft purchased from the US will arrive in the country today or tomorrow depending on the impact of Typhoon Usagi, according to media reports.
The Chinese-language Apple Daily reported yesterday that according to the air force, the P-3C Orion will take off from the US and stop in Guam or Hawaii before arriving at Pingtung Air Force Base.
The aircraft will be flown by US pilots with Taiwanese air force personnel on board, the report said.
The manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, has posted pictures of the P3C carrying Republic of China Air Force markings, the report said.
The military has said that Taiwan would take delivery of four P-3Cs by the end of this year, which will bolster anti-submarine capabilities. The aircraft will be the first of 12 to be delivered by the end of 2015.
The P3Cs and associated equipment and services, worth US$1.96 billion, are part of an arms deal valued at US$2.23 billion announced by the US in 2007.
A new facility has been built in Pingtung County for the repair and maintenance of the P-3Cs. The 26 S-2T aircraft that currently fulfil maritime patrol duties, which were purchased in 1986, can only remain airborne for four hours, compared with the P-3C’s 12 hours. In addition the P-3C has a range of 2,800 nautical miles (5,185km) compared with the S-2T’s 450 nautical miles.
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56
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