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President hails IDF upgrade, vows to pursue warplane self-sufficiency

ROC Central News Agency

2011/06/30 18:01:31

Taipei, June 30 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou said Thursday the mid-life upgrade of the locally built indigenous defense fighters (IDFs) marks a step forward in Taiwan's warplane manufacturing technology.

Addressing a ceremony marking the delivery of six newly upgraded IDF jet fighters, Ma said the government will not abandon the pursuit of defense self-sufficiency and work even harder to realize the goal.

Ma said he has directed the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and state-run Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. (AIDC) to cooperate in research and development of high-performance training aircraft.

"The three units should work together to foster conditions favorable for realizing our ability to make warplanes," he urged.

The delivery ceremony took place at the AIDC's Shalu factory compound in central Taiwan's Taichung City.

Previous media reports said the state-owned company has collaborated with the Air Force to complete the upgrade of more than 70 of the IDF jet fighters, also known as F-CK-1 Ching-kuo, at a total cost of NT$17 billion (US$586.21 million).

According to AIDC Chairman Hsing Yu-kuang, the mid-life upgrade project gives the IDF jet fighters stronger attack power, with their radar systems now capable of operating in intensive jamming environment and their flight operating system upgraded from 16 bits to 32 bits.

The first batch of six upgraded IDFs were delivered on Thursday.

Ma congratulated the engineers who worked on the upgrade for extending the life of the used fighters and giving Taiwan's military capabilities a needed boost.

"When the IDF fighter made its debut more than two decades ago, some people ridiculed it as 'I don't fly.' But the locally built fighters have proved to be highly effective with few malfunctions and a low failure rate. The IDF fighters stand for 'I do fly. I do fight and I don't fail,'" Ma said.

Ma said over the past three years since his inauguration, relations across the Taiwan Strait have made substantial improvements. But Taiwan should still safeguard its national security by maintaining its defensive capability. (By Chen Ching-ping and Sofia Wu) enditem/ly