Military evaluating third generation of fighter aircraft
Taipei, June 19 (CNA) The Ministry of National Defense (MND) is still working on plans to acquire a new generation of military aircraft, an official said Friday.
Military spokesman Yu Sy-tue was responding to a newspaper report that the state-run Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. (ADIC) has designed a new generation of jet fighters that cater to the military’s special needs.
According to the China Times report, the ADIC has completed the design of the new military aircraft with assistance from Russian experts in the field.
In the process, the Taipei-based daily said, the ADIC had sent people to Russia to consult with Russian strategists and engineers on the design of the new fighter.
The paper further said the ADIC-designed jet fighters will be equipped with twin engines and will be capable of taking off and landing over short distances.
Commenting on the report, Yu said the military is planning the acquisition of a new generation of jet fighters.
“The military will take into account the changing international strategic environment, enemy threat, government finances, development trends in jet fighters and the possibility of acquiring them while working on new aircraft acquisition plans,” Yu explained.
He would not divulge details, however, on the military’s acquisition and reasearch plans.
Instead, Yu said, jet fighters with short take-off and landing requirements, stealth qualities and beyond-vision combat functions are all features that meet the military’s future combat requirements.
Meanwhile, ADIC spokesman Lee Shih-chang said the company has never sent any R&D staff to Russia, in an indirect denial of the newspaper report. (By Sofia Wu)
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