Tainan Drone Training Center Shows Off Military Preparedness, Arms Production
A military drone training center in southern Taiwan is preparing troops to use UAVs for both combat and rescue operations. But local media reported that some of country’s surveillance drones were not domestically produced as they should be.
REPORTER:
Taiwan’s domestically developed tactical short-range drone, Capricorn, takes off at this drone training center. The center in southern Taiwan is opening its doors to the media for the first time since starting up last year.
REPORTER:
Behind the controller, these operators have gone through rigorous training.
REPORTER:
The military says these drones are sensitive and hard to control, but once they’re mastered, they can be used in both military and rescue operations.
Cpl. Hsu Yi-min (ARMY UAV TRAINING CENTER):
Things like setting up the equipment, flight control and interpreting intelligence data, each task requires us to be focused and careful.
REPORTER:
The training center in Tainan city is part of the country’s effort to ramp up its combat capacity with drones and domestic arms production.
REPORTER:
But recently, local media have reported that the coast guard has procured a batch of coastal and maritime surveillance drones made in Latvia. Not Taiwan.
REPORTER:
The coast guard administration has denied the allegation.
Ou Yu-fei (COAST GUARD ADMINISTRATION):
[Everything is] in line with the domestic production policy while meeting the coast guards’ operational needs. The coast guard is monitoring the contractors. Everything’s being done according to the law and the contract.
REPORTER:
Some experts suggest that Taiwan allows imports of drone parts that do not concern security issues, such as propellers and motors. In an effort to stay independent of Chinese-dominated drone supply chains.
Justin Wu and Irene Lin for TaiwanPlus.
