On March 14 a Taiwanese Mirage 2000 fighter crashed off the island’s southeast coast at 10 am native time throughout a coaching mission from the Chihhang Airbase, with the pilot ejecting and being rescued safely by helicopter. All Mirage 2000 fighters in Taiwan had been subsequently grounded. The accident represents the newest of many suffered by the Taiwanese fleet, with all F-16s being grounded in January after a brand new F-16V fighter crashed and two F-5E jets and a previous F-16 crashing in 2020. Of the 4 Taiwanese fighter lessons in service, all of that are low upkeep lightweights, solely the indigenous F-CK Ching Kuo jets have prevented excessive crash charges with the American F-5 and F-16 jet, and much moreso the French constructed Mirage 2000s, having suffered from notably excessive crash charges.
Taiwan’s Air Power turned a number one consumer for the Mirage 2000 after an order for 60 of the jets was positioned in 1992, with the plane bought alongside two squadrons value of F-16A/B Preventing Falcons and an identical variety of indigenous F-CK Ching Kuo fighters offering Taiwan with three lessons of light-weight fourth technology jets. The Mirage 2000 was by far the most expensive, however points with manufacturing high quality in France emerged which resulted in 10 p.c of the fleet crashing – with the newest crash bringing this as much as to 12 p.c. Taiwan’s Air Power has consequently significantly thought-about retiring the plane from service, with cracks having usually appeared within the airframes whereas no comparable points have affected the F-16 or different Taiwanese plane. One other main issue is the obsolescence of the Mirage 2000’s avionics and armaments, as whereas the U.S. has supplied the F-16V improve bundle for previous F-16s together with a robust new APG-83 AESA radar and state-of-the-art avionics and digital warfare techniques, France affords no comparable packages which leaves little use for the fighters even when they had been protected to fly. Mirage 2000s are anticipated to be the primary of Taiwan’s 4 fighter lessons to be retired, and are anticipated to get replaced by new F-16 Block 72 fighters of which 66 had been ordered in 2019. The F-16 has not solely an overwhelmingly superior fight efficiency, with avionics and armaments a number of many years forward technologically, but additionally a a lot better security file.
