The military has committed to spending NT$10.2 billion (US$328.77 million) on purchases of spare engine parts for the air force’s Mirage 2000-5 fleet to ensure combat readiness of the French-made fighters after more than two decades in service, a source said on Thursday.
The Ministry of National Defense is awarding the NT$10.2 billion contract to Paris-based Safran Aircraft Engines for “spare engine parts,” a Government e-Procurement System notice said.
According to the notice, the order is to be fulfilled starting from this month until December 2028 in Hsinchu, with the Republic of China Air Force listed as the competent agency.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
Although the notice did not specify what kind of aircraft the spare engine parts are for, an unnamed source familiar with the matter told reporters that they are for the air force’s Mirage 2000-5 fleet based at Hsinchu Air Base.
The latest deal marks the third contract the ministry has signed with foreign companies over the past month to ensure that its two-decade-old Mirage 2000-5 fighters remain available and mission capable, the source said.
A day earlier, the ministry said it had reached an agreement with a French company to buy parts and components for air-to-air missiles fired from its Mirage 2000-5s.
The parts and components are for MBDA MICA and R.550 Magic air-to-air missiles, the source said.
Taipei ordered 60 Mirage 2000-5s from Paris in the 1990s, with the aircraft entering service in 1997.
However, in more than 20 years, crashes have reduced the fleet to 54 aircraft.
The French-made jets are responsible for safeguarding Taiwan’s northern airspace.
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