Taiwan says 2 dead in military training plane crash
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Taiwanese soldiers during an annual military exercise in Taichung on Jan 27.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Taipei – Taiwan’s air force suspended training flights on T-34 planes after one aircraft crashed during a simulated engine failure exercise on June 2, killing the two pilots on board.
The single-engine propeller plane went down at 8.08am at the northern end of the runway at Gangshan Air Base in the island’s southern port city of Kaohsiung, the air force said.
A task force has been set up to investigate the cause of the crash, which took place about 20 minutes after take-off.
The pilots have been identified only by their rank and surnames, lieutenant-colonels Lu and Guo.
The pilots, aged 41 and 45, had not reported any problems with the aircraft in the moments leading up to the crash, said the air force’s inspector-general, Major-General Chiang Yi-cheng.
“Throughout the entire flight there were no abnormal radio communications before the accident occurred,” he said at a news conference.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said he was “deeply saddened” at the loss of life, describing the pilots as “heroic” and thanking them for their “sacrifice and dedication” to Taiwan.
A spokesperson for the air force declined to provide further details when contacted by AFP.
Taiwan’s air force uses Beechcraft single-engine propeller planes as the primary trainer aircraft for its pilots, according to the Defence Ministry’s website. The planes were first delivered to Taiwan in 1984.
In January, an F-16 fighter jet crashed into the sea off eastern Taiwan during a routine training mission. The pilot was believed to have ejected from the aircraft but has not been found. AFP
