AT-5 AJT Advanced Jet Trainer - Yung Yin (Brave Eagle)
On 22 June 2020, the newly designed Taiwanese AT-5 Brave Eagle made its first test flight. The new DPP government of president Tsai Ing-wen wanted to build a completely indigenous trainer, dubbed the XAT-5 AJT. By 2015 the Air Force’s AT-3 and F-5 training jets were nearing the end of their respective service life and in critical need of upgrades. Taiwan’s AT-3 aircraft were built in the 1980s and built by AIDC with foreign assistance. The replacement will be fielded to two bases: one in Taitung to replace the aging F-5E/F Tigers and the other in Kangshan to replace the AT-3s.
The Air Force's new advanced trainer, which was hailed as the national machine-building achievement, held a factory ceremony at 9:00AM 24 September 2019 in Taichung Hanxiang Company and was exposed for the first time in front of the Chinese. In addition to personally witnessing the president, Tsai Ing-wen, also named the "Yungyin" trainer, today showed the first prototype (A1 machine). According to Hanxiang and the Ministry of National Defense, the first flight will be held in June 2020. Mass production would start at the end of 2021, and enter "low-speed mass production" in 2022, while the peak delivery forecast is expected to fall from 2023 to 2025, and 66 flights will be completed in the first half of 2026.
The "T1 machine" had been handed over to the Chinese Academy of Sciences for testing; the other two are for test flight, and the first test flight "A1 machine" was shipped after the ceremony. The Ministry of National Defense commissioned Hanxiang Company to produce 66 high-education machines with a total budget of 68.64 billion yuan. The Chinese Academy of Sciences was the main contractor and was commissioned by Han Xiang. It is understood that the state-made new high-tech machine introduced many major suppliers of warplane components, including the ejection seat of the British Martin Baker Aircraft Company, the flight control computer of British Aerospace Systems, and the combination of Han Xiang and Han Wei. The "F124" engine jointly developed by the International Turbine Engine also equipped the new machine.
To replace the aged AT-3 advanced trainers and F-5E/F fighters currently used to train fighter pilots, the ROC Air Force planned to allocate a budget of about USD 2.1 billion for 66 new advanced trainers, which were expected to be delivered starting in 2019. To meet this need, the Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC) offered the AT-3 MAX (resembling the AT-3 but with upgraded avionics and increased thrust) and XAT- 5 (a simplified version of the IDF fighter), and hoped to win over the ROCAF. Models of both trainers were on display. The AIDC was also working with Italy’s Alenia Aermacchi to participate in the bid with the Italian-designed M346, which provided the ROCAF with another option.
From a readiness and capabilities perspective, domestically developed jet trainers boast a high degree of compatibility and carry the advantage of being able to be rapidly used in combat missions or to supplement depleted first-line aircraft. Development would require 2-3 years and an additional upfront R&D expenditure of approximately NT$45 billion.
Taiwan's Air Force signed an agreement 07 February 2017 to commission a domestic military-run institute to build 66 advanced trainer planes, signaling a step forward in the government's efforts to develop the local defense industry. At the signing ceremony, President Tsai Ing-wen said the deal signaled that Taiwan's self-reliance in the area of national defense had moved past the planning stage.
Under the terms of the agreement signed by Air Force Commander Shen Yi-ming and National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST) President Chang Guan-chung, the first prototype of the trainer aircraft is expected to be completed in 2019 and test flights a year later.
Under the pacts, which pertain to an NT$68.6 billion (US$2.2 billion) MND program, 66 XT-5 Blue Magpie trainers will be designed and built by Taoyuan City-headquartered National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology [NCSIST] — the main R&D arm of the MND—in conjunction with Taichung-based Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. [AIDC], a state-owned firm overseen by the Ministry of Economic Affairs. A prototype is scheduled for completion in 2019, with test flights expected to take place the next year. By 2026, the full complement of aircraft will replace the Republic of China (Taiwan) air force’s aging fleet of AT-3 trainers and F-5 fighters.
By 2026, the fleet of 66 advanced trainers will be delivered to seamlessly replace the military's AT-3 trainer aircraft and F-5 fighter jets, which are over 30 years old, the institute said. The Ministry of National Defense (MND), which has allocated a budget of NT$68.6 billion (US$2.21 billion) to build the new aircraft, decided to adopt the Aerospace Industrial Development Corp.'s (AIDC) XT-5 "Blue Magpie" design for the trainers.
Han Xiang Airlines signed a contract with the Zhongshan Academy of Sciences on 25 April 2017 for a new type of training aircraft. After one year of planning and contracting procurement operations, Han Xiang executives revealed that on 01 June 2018 the assembly ceremony was held and the goal of the first flight in 2020 was fully pursued. The Air Force planned to compile NT$68.6 billion from 2017 to 2028 to build 66 new high-education machines. It is expected that the first prototype will be shipped in 2019 and the first flight in 2020.
Hanxiang’s self-developed high-education machine will be named after the unique species of Taiwan’s blue dragonfly, because the blue dragonfly special protection nest represents the determination of self-defense. Taiwan Blue Dragonfly was voted "National Bird" by Internet in 2008. It has two characteristics: First, to protect the energy of the home when seeking survival. Second only to the Israeli national bird "Hai Sheng", if it is due to the breeding season, if there is an invasion by foreign enemies, it will immediately fight back, "declaring the determination of self-defense." Secondly, Liao Rongxin emphasized that blue dragonfly is a group of animals. If food is scarce, it will help to feed non-self-generated children, symbolizing team spirit, and also cooperate with Taiwan National Aerospace Industry policy.
The “Brave Eagle” Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) conducted its official inaugural flight of a mass-produced “Brave Eagle” on 21 October 2021. The aircraft was accompanied by one of the company’s two original AJT versions developed for research purposes. The first Taiwan-made advanced jet trainer T-5 Brave Eagle was delivered to the island's air force in December 2021. The T-5 Brave Eagle will replace the F-5 as the air force's primary training aircraft. Taiwanese companies produce 55 percent of the parts in the T-5. A total of 66 jets would be in service before 2027
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