Taiwan’s F-16 fighter fleet has been grounded after an ‘anomaly’ saw a jet and its pilot disappear

• A Taiwanese F-16 fighter jet and its pilot disappeared off the northeastern coast of the island on Tuesday.

• In response, the Taiwan Air Force grounded its F-16 fleet and suspended training missions.

• Search and rescue efforts are still continuing. It is unclear at this time whether the pilot ejected from the aircraft.

Taiwan’s air force has grounded its F-16 fleet and suspended training missions on the jet after one of the planes and the pilot went missing earlier this week.

The search for the pilot and plane, which authorities believe crashed after an “anomaly” during flight, continues, but rough seas off the island are making efforts difficult.

local time on Tuesday night, an American-made F-16 fighter jet appointed Taiwan Air ForceThe Fifth Tactical Air Wing, operating out of Hualien Air Base, was lost in the waters off the northeastern coast of the island. The Air Force said the fighter became separated from the group during night training after the jets entered cloud cover.

The F-16 suddenly descended rapidly. Its altitude was only 500 meters when radar contact was lost. Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense identified the missing pilot as Captain Hsin Po-yi. Authorities are unsure whether Hsin was successfully ejected from the plane; However, Hsin had stated that he would jump seconds before the plane disappeared. It is unclear whether he did this.

In the days since the incident, a search and rescue operation has been ongoing in the waters off Hualien County. Multiple aircraft and ships participated in the mission, but high waves and strong winds make the search for the jet and Hsin difficult.

Air Force officials told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday that a malfunction appeared in the F-16’s main onboard computer in which the plane’s flight path was no longer displayed.

Now Taiwanese air force officials have grounded all flights. Taiwan’s F-16 fleet for inspections and training missions were temporarily suspended. Taiwan currently has approximately 140 F-16s, which are older A/B models that have been updated in recent years. It is expected to receive a batch of newer F-16V or Viper jets in the coming years to add to its fleet.

The F-16 is made by American defense giant Lockheed Martin. Despite flying for over 50 years, it still represents a highly capable fourth-generation jet. The newest operator of the aircraft is Ukraine, which has received a limited number of aircraft from NATO partner countries.

This accident involving the Taiwanese military follows a similar incident in January 2022, when a Taiwanese F-16 crashed off the west coast of the island while participating in training exercises. At that time, the F-16 was lost after taking off from Chiayi Air Base in southern Taiwan. In response, Taiwan suspended combat training for the fleet.

It is not uncommon to see fleets grounded, especially after accidents where the cause is unclear. The US military did this regularly.

Taiwan’s Air Force has been challenged in recent years by having difficulty tracking Chinese military aircraft that regularly fly into the country’s air defense identification zone. Taipei’s smaller air force experienced higher operational tempo draining pilots, aircraft, resources and stressing maintainers. Recently, Taiwan held rapid response exercises in response. China’s massive exercises soon.

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