The air force this morning simulated anti-aircraft strikes with Patriot II and Tien Kung III missiles in Pingtung County in a rare live-fire exercise open to the media.
The exercise was conducted by the Air Defense and Missile Command at the Jiupeng (九鵬) military base in Manjhou Township (滿州).
The first target drone was launched at about 6am. At 6:20am, the target was detected on radar and a Patriot II missile was launched to intercept it.
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
A Tien Kung (Sky Bow) III missile was launched by another unit to intercept a second target at 6:55am, while another Patriot missile was launched at 7:28am toward a third drone by a separate unit.
All three successfully hit their targets, which were about 30km away beyond observers’ line of sight, the military said.
The exercise was a test of decentralized command, allowing each unit to complete the exercise according to the established chain of command to better simulate real-life scenarios, 794th Brigade Captain Kao Shu-li (高淑莉) said.
The success of the exercise shows the air force’s training and command and control capabilities during joint operations, he said.
It was the first time since 2012 that the Jiupeng base was opened to the media.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday said it is fully aware of the situation following reports that the son of ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai (薄熙來) has arrived in Taiwan and is to marry a Taiwanese. Local media reported that Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), son of the former member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is to marry the granddaughter of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital founder Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政). The pair met when studying abroad and arranged to get married this year, with the wedding breakfast to be held at The One holiday resort in Hsinchu
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon this morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan between Friday and Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The storm, which as of 8am was still 1,100km southeast of southern Taiwan, is currently expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, the CWA said. Because of its rapid speed — 28kph as of 8am — a sea warning for the storm could be issued tonight, rather than tomorrow, as previously forecast, the CWA said. In terms of its impact, Usagi is to bring scattered or
An orange gas cloud that leaked from a waste management plant yesterday morning in Taoyuan’s Guanyin District (觀音) was likely caused by acidic waste, authorities said, adding that it posed no immediate harm. The leak occurred at a plant in the district’s Environmental Science and Technology Park at about 7am, the Taoyuan Fire Department said. Firefighters discovered a cloud of unidentified orange gas leaking from a waste tank when they arrived on the site, it said, adding that they put on Level A chemical protection before entering the building. After finding there was no continuous leak, the department worked with the city’s Department
RSS