Taiwan grounds F-16 fighter fleet for safety checks as search continues for missing jet

Taiwan on November 18 grounded all of its F-16 fighter jets for safety checks, while rescuers continue to search for one that went missing during a training exercise on Tuesday. The Taiwanese officials informed that the grounding involves about 150 planes, which have played a crucial role in the country’s efforts to deter Chinese aircraft that have been encroaching into its airspace more regularly in recent months. 

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen said, “The rescue mission is our top priority now. The air force has grounded all F-16s for checks and I've instructed an investigation into the cause of the incident”. 

On Tuesday, the air force said that a single-seater plane fell off radar screens about two minutes after taking off and the fate of the pilot still remains unknown. The officials have ordered for a massive air and sea search in the area surrounding the airbase in the eastern city of Hualien along the Pacific coast. The disappearance of the plane also follows the crash of an F-5E fighter during a training mission last month, killing the pilot. 

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Seven F-16s crashed till date

The recent incidents come as Taiwan’s airforce is under greater pressure to respond to incursions by warplanes from China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory to be brought under its control by force if necessary. Taiwan had purchased the F-16s from the United States, which is its chief ally, in the 1990s. The country has been upgrading its existing models along with ordering the latest version of the versatile jet. 

According to PTI, in the past, there have been seven crashes involving F-16s since Taiwan took delivery of the jets from the US in 1997. The country has scrambled its planes at double the rate of last year to protect against China’s increased incursions. Experts believe that Beijing’s fly-bys are designed to test the island’s defence responses but also to wear out its fighters. China has piled military, economic and diplomatic pressure on Taiwan since President Tsai’s election in 2016, in part due to her refusal to acknowledge its stance that the island is part of “one China”. 

(With inputs from PTI) 

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