Two upgraded early warning aircraft returned from U.S.
ROC Central News Agency
2011/12/18 20:30:07
Taipei, Dec. 18 (CNA) Two early warning aircraft that were sent to the United State in June last year for upgrades have been returned and will be tested soon, military sources said Sunday.
They have been retrofitted with more efficient eight-blade propellers and their radar and surveillance systems have been upgraded.
The two aircraft, originally called E-2T, were sold to Taiwan by the U.S. in the 1990s. They were shipped to the U.S. in June 2010 for upgrading and have now been renamed E-2K, according to military sources.
The aircraft will be put into service within 10 days after completing a series of test flights, the sources said.
Two other E-2Ts were sent to the U.S. in early November and are expected to be returned to Taiwan next year.
The upgrade program is part of the military's efforts to update its arsenal under an arms sale deal with the U.S. in October 2008 that included an upgrade of four E-2Ts to the Hawkeye 2000 configuration at a cost of US$2.5 billion. (By Chen Pei-huang and Hanna Liu) ENDITEM/sc/pc
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