Taiwan launches annual joint Air Force-Navy warfare drill
ROC Central News Agency
03/20/2023 11:59 AM
Taipei, March 20 (CNA) Taiwan's military on Monday kicked off its annual drill featuring the Air Force's major warplanes and Navy's anti-submarines to test their capabilities in conducting joint warfare amid rising military coercion from China.
A military source told CNA that the Air Force's backbone fighters, namely F-16Vs, Mirage-2000 5s, domestically-made IDFs and P-3C submarine-hunting aircraft, as well as the Navy's S-70C anti-submarine helicopters and drones, have been dispatched from military bases around the country to take part in the joint warfare as soon as the drill's start was announced at 6:22 a.m. on Monday.
The drill is set to run until Thursday and will test the Air Force and Navy's capabilities to conduct joint warfare, the source added.
Meanwhile, the Air Force also recently launched a workshop at eastern Taiwan's Hualien Air Base, featuring pilot instructors who teach aerial maneuvers and tactics to pilots of F-16Vs, Mirage-2000 5s, and IDFs.
These efforts were being made amid rising cross-Strait tension as Chinese warplanes regularly enter into Taiwan's self-declared air defense identification zone and warships sail near Taiwan's waters.
The drills are held annually, but not just once a year and are seen as preparations for bigger military exercises such as the annual Han Kuang drills.
(By Matt Yu and Joseph Yeh)
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