MODERNIZE AND REFIT:
Much of the infrastructure of Chiashan Air Force Base is reaching the end of its service life and needs to be replaced or updated
The air force plans to spend NT$3.57 billion (US$112.52 million) from next year to 2031 to upgrade the physical infrastructure of Chiashan Air Force Base in Hualien County, Taiwan’s largest underground aircraft shelter.
The “Chiashan Base System Performance Enhancement Project” was included in the general budget for next year submitted to the legislature on Monday.
Dug into the mountains near Hualien, Chiashan’s aircraft shelters and ammunition storage facilities are protected by the Central Mountain Range and designed to withstand bombardment and strong earthquakes.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
The base, which was completed in the early 1990s, can reportedly accommodate about 250 fighter jets underground and is considered as an important facility for preserving the air force’s combat capabilities in the event of an enemy first strike, particularly a missile attack.
Under the proposal, the air force has earmarked NT$3.57 billion over five years to upgrade 10 major systems at the facility, including instrumentation and control, ventilation and air-conditioning, emergency power supplies, elevators, security doors, fire protection, auxiliary facilities, electricity, water supply and drainage.
The upgrades would harden the facility’s defenses against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats, as well as electromagnetic pulses.
The air force said the project is intended to implement Taiwan’s military strategy of “resolute defense and multilayered deterrence.”
Under the strategy, the air force’s fighter squadrons would be dispersed to Chiashan in Hualien and Shizishan in Taitung County during wartime to preserve combat capabilities as ordered.
However, systems at Chiashan have been in operation for more than 30 years, and are facing the end of their service lives and diminishing manufacturing sources and material shortages
Such shortages can occur when original manufacturers discontinue production, suppliers leave the market or components become unavailable, making equipment maintenance and replenishment increasingly difficult.
The air force said most of the systems inside the underground facility are specialized electromechanical integrated systems, and that maintenance of some equipment is complicated by regulations, overseas procurement requirements, patents and exclusive agency rights.
Upgrading the systems would help ensure that the facility can continue to fulfill its mission of preserving combat capabilities, the air force said.
The air force has also earmarked about NT$6.88 billion from next year to 2031 to build 22 hardened aircraft shelters at Chiashan and four at Shizishan.
The air force said the project is intended to improve the blast-protection capabilities and effectiveness of existing aircraft shelters in relation to the number of fighter jets they are intended to accommodate, to ensure the survivability of Taiwan’s air combat capabilities.