Taiwan Drills Rapid Helicopter Refueling for Sustained Combat
By Fuhua Hung/Lery Hiciano
Taiwan’s military is testing how quickly its forces can refuel and return to combat during the Han Kuang Exercise. A Black Hawk and other helicopters practiced “hot refueling” in Taoyuan, with fuel delivered to a temporary site and aircraft refueled while keeping engines running to minimize time on the ground.
Taiwan Military Drills Highlight Rapid Refueling
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Han Kuang Exercise 2026
REPORTER:
A Blackhawk from the 601st Air Cavalry Brigade drops off a load of fuel in the northern city of Taoyuan on Tuesday morning. Units practiced "hot refueling" - gassing up with the engine on to minimize time on the ground when choppers are most vulnerable.
Chen Kuo-ming (EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, DEFENCE INTERNATIONAL):
Assuming that fuel trucks can't get through surrounding roads, helicopters can fly over the obstacles. A mountaintop clearing with enough space for one or two vehicles is big enough for a helicopter to drop off fuel tanks and then ground crews can carry out refueling operations.
REPORTER:
It works like this. After the fuel is dropped off, ground troops, some with anti-drone weapons, provide cover and secure the area. Minutes later, three more choppers arrive to gas up: an Apache, another Blackhawk, and an OH-58D—different copters for different battlefield roles, from ferrying supplies to tactical strikes.
Lery Hiciano (TAIWANPLUS REPORTER):
A steady fuel supply is vital for modern forces. Ensuring helicopters and other support vehicles can quickly refuel and stay in the action is key for sustained combat operations past the initial stage of a conflict.
REPORTER:
The whole operation took about 20 minutes—a rapid turnaround time that could make a real difference in actual combat in an attack by China, which claims Taiwan.
Chieh Chung (ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, TAMKANG UNIVERSITY):
(In a conflict) our frontlines and those of (China) would be very close to each other and may even be intermingled. It is important for the army to maintain air combat capabilities to quickly identify temporarily usable terrain to rapidly carry out refueling operations.
REPORTER:
The helicopter drill comes after the military's Abrams tanks carried out refueling exercises also in Taoyuan, near the country's largest airport on Monday.
REPORTER:
The exercises unveiled the Abrams's passive anti-drone armor, showing that the military has drawn lessons from the war in Ukraine – where tanks proved easy prey for low-cost drones. Troops provided cover and building materials were used to camouflage the vehicles.
REPORTER:
These drills focused on honing the military's ability to repel a large-scale invasion – not only by delivering fire, but also by ensuring the country's weapons systems have the fuel they need to stay in the fight.
