Taiwan Military Drills Simulate Interception of China's Warplanes

Taiwan conducted a tri-services military drill yesterday to simulate a response to an air attack by Beijing.

Eight F-16 jets took off at 0530 on March 25 to simulate an intercept of aircraft flying in from the mainland. Last week, China conducted an exercise in which its warplanes approached Taiwan’s airspace at night for the first time.

“Units from all branches of the military took part in the exercises, which started at 5:30am with the F-16s scrambled to respond to a simulated attack by China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). The air exercises were aimed at sending a message to Beijing that Taiwan would do whatever it takes to protect its sovereignty and national security,” Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense said in a statement on Monday.

On February 10, PLAAF fighters reportedly entered Taiwan’s airspace and were warned off.

The Hualien Air base conducted emergency landing drills at its backup runway as part of a scenario in which its main runway was damaged. The drills were conducted in the absence of live ammunition.