Reopen Taoyuan Air Base, lawmaker saysSPEED MATTERS: If Taiwan’s fighters flew out of the Taoyuan base they would take six minutes to reach the area of intrusion as opposed to 15, the TPP’s Chiu Chen-yuan saidBy Huang Ching-huan, Tu Chu-min and Jason Pan / Staff reportersThe shuttered Taoyuan Air Base should be reopened to meet the challenges posed by China’s increased incursions into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Chiu Chen-yuan (邱臣遠) said yesterday. “If our fighter jets were launched from the Taoyuan base, they would only need six minutes to reach our air defense zone’s northeast sector,” he said. “We urgently need to bolster air defense capacity for northern Taiwan, so the Taoyuan Air Base must be reopened.”Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Chiu Chen-yuan speaks to reporters in Taipei on Dec. 15 last year. Situated southeast of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan Air Base dates back to 1944. The air force stopped using it in 2007, when it became the Taoyuan Naval Base.
Source: Taipei Times January 09, 2023 22:13 UTC