The Ministry of National Defense has allocated NT$3.2 billion (US$104.04 million) to upgrade the radio equipment of more than 100 coast guard ships and boats from this year through 2026, a source familiar with the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The allocation is part of a special budget of the Sea-Air Combat Power Improvement Plan, which allows the government to spend more than NT$240 billion on military programs.
The Chunghsan Institute of Science and Technology — which is responsible for obtaining radios for coast guard vessels — has called three conferences with potential contractors, the source said yesterday, adding that it expects to award the project in August.
Photo: Hung Ting-hung, Taipei Times.
The institute’s solicitation included 124 self-designed CS/PRC-37C manpack radios, 130 shipborne mobile radio base stations, equipment for two network operations centers, 10 repeaters and six dispatch counsels, they said, citing information disclosed to the private sector.
Although local media previously reported that the budget would only cover 12 Anping-class offshore patrol vessels, all 35-tonne-class boats and larger vessels would receive the upgrades, the source said.
More than 100 of the coast guard’s 185 ships would receive them, they said.
The Hai Wei Project is under the sole control of the defense ministry under Article 4 of the National Defense Act (國防法), which gives it the authority to manage and direct the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) if it is mobilized for national defense, they said.
The Anping-class vessels are the coast guard’s version of the navy’s 600-tonne Tuo Chiang-class corvettes, which can be refitted with Hsiung Feng II and Hsiung Feng III cruise missiles, they said.
If war breaks out, the coast guard would be incorporated into the navy’s Task Force 62 under the armed forces’ regulations governing the defense of Taiwan proper and Penghu County, the source said.
A separate source said that a Taiwan-US coast guard partnership continues to emphasize disaster response and maritime law enforcement, despite Taipei’s ambitions to transform its coast guard into a second navy.
Meanwhile, Institute for National Defense and Security Research analyst Shu Hsiao-huang (舒孝煌) said the CGA should lobby to be invited to the US-led Rim of the Pacific exercises, as it would allow the coast guard to broaden its participation in Indo-Pacific security matters through its relationship with the US Coast Guard, which regularly plays a significant part in the drills.
Additional reporting by Wu Su-wei
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old
SEA SEARCH: Nine crew members of a cargo ship had taken to the water after the vessel sunk off the southern coast, with a rescue effort under way, officials said The strongest typhoon to hit Taiwan in eight years yesterday killed three people and flooded parts of the nation’s second-biggest city, while rescuers were searching for nine sailors after their cargo ship sank in the storm. Typhoon Gaemi transformed streets in Kaohsiung into rivers, with some households flooded. Offices and schools were closed for the second consecutive day, with thousands of people evacuated. Three people died and 380 were injured due to strong winds and torrential rainfall brought by Typhoon Gaemi, the Central Emergency Response Center said. The typhoon made landfall in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) at midnight yesterday and departed Taiwan