The government is developing two new military vehicles as part of its policy to achieve self-sufficiency in defense.
The armed forces are developing a fighting vehicle based on the CM-32 Clouded Leopard armored vehicle, and a four-wheeled reconnaissance tactical vehicle to replace the outdated M113 armored carrier and multipurpose Humvee vehicle.
The Ministry of National Defense is to purchase the components for a first prototype of the reconnaissance tactical vehicle by June, integrate the systems by October and complete a development assessment by March next year, the ministry said in its latest report to the legislature.
Development assessments of three other prototypes are to be completed by March 2024 and a combat assessment is to be conducted by October that year, the report said, adding that more than 300 vehicles are to be produced if a satisfactory prototype is developed.
The ministry’s annual budget showed that the Armaments Bureau had allocated NT$560 million (US$19.5 million) from last year to 2024 to research and develop four vehicles for reconnaissance and battle duty.
In response to criticism that the budget is too high, the ministry said that the budget was cut to NT$490 million at the end of last year.
It is more reasonable than the US’ development of a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, which included 43 prototypes at US$6.97 million apiece, the ministry added.
Except for the engine, the components for the reconnaissance tactical vehicle can be locally sourced, which represents a self-sufficiency rate of 89 percent, it said.
The tactical vehicle might eventually be developed for broader uses, such as a mortar carrier or a combat vehicle with missiles, it added.
The report said that a fighting vehicle with a 105mm gun is being developed based on the eight-wheeled Clouded Leopard, which was locally made.
An XT112 gun is also being developed by the Armaments Bureau’s No. 202 Artillery and Ammunition Plant and is to be produced in small batches for testing in June, it said.
A first prototype of the fighting vehicle is to pass a development assessment by June, with a second prototype to be constructed by the end of August and a complete development assessment finished by the end of December, the report said.
The two prototypes are to undergo a preliminary combat assessment by the end of October next year, it said, adding that the military plans to produce 282 vehicles from 2024 to 2036.
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
Snow fell in the mountainous areas of northern, central and eastern Taiwan in the early hours of yesterday, as cold air currents moved south. In the northern municipality of Taoyuan, snow started falling at about 6am in Fusing District (復興), district head Su Tso-hsi (蘇佐璽) said. By 10am, Lalashan National Forest Recreation Area, as well as Hualing (華陵), Sanguang (三光) and Gaoyi (高義) boroughs had seen snowfall, Su said. In central Taiwan, Shei-Pa National Park in Miaoli County and Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Nantou County saw snowfall of 5cm and 6cm respectively, by 10am, staff at the parks said. It began snowing
The 2025 Kaohsiung Wonderland–Winter Amusement Park event has teamed up with the Japanese manga series Chiikawa this year for its opening at Love River Bay yesterday, attracting more than 10,000 visitors, the city government said. Following the success of the “2024 Kaohsiung Wonderland” collaboration with a giant inflatable yellow duck installation designed by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, this year the Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau collaborated with Chiikawa by Japanese illustrator Nagano to present two giant inflatable characters. Two inflatable floats — the main character, Chiikwa, a white bear-like creature with round ears, and Hachiware, a white cat with a blue-tipped tail
RSS