Taiwanese F-16A Fighter Jet Missing After Take-off

An F-16A fighter of the Taiwan Air Force's Fifth Tactical Mixed Wing that took off on a night combat sortie training mission yesterday is reported missing.

The jet took off from Hualien base at  6:5 p.m., and the radar spot disappeared at 6:17 p.m. The Air Force confirmed that the No. 3 and No. 4 F16 fighters currently undergoing night training assisted the search in the missing waters, Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) reported.

“Air Force Fifth Tactical Mixed Wing (401) 26th Combat Team  F-16A (Aircraft No. 6672) took off from Hualien during night flight training at 6:5, but the radar spot disappeared at 6:17 Eight miles northeast of Hualien Airport, about 5 kilometers east of Hualien Port, the battle management center found that the aircraft’s light spot disappeared,” CNA said quoting Air Force officials.

The Air Force has confirmed that the pilot on board was Captain Jiang Zhengzhi of the 26th combat team.

The military Black Hawk helicopters were conducting search and rescue operations, and notified the Marine Patrol Department to attend and air-crew search and rescue aircraft on standby. At the same time, they broadcasted the assistance of nearby ships through Fishery Radio and Keelung Coast Radio, the report said.