Taiwan said it is temporarily landing its F-16 fighters for a "check", Defense Minister Wellington Ko announced, and the reason is the disappearance of a pilot whose plane fell into the sea, reported Agence France-Presse, quoted by BTA.
According to the Taiwanese air force, the pilot ejected during a flight on Tuesday off the eastern coast of the island. This happened about 70 minutes after it took off on a routine training mission.
"The inspection is expected to be completed by Saturday and will not open any gaps in the air defense," Wellington Ko told reporters at the Legislative Yuan, Taiwan's unicameral parliament.
The Ministry of Defense stressed that while training missions and combat exercises have been suspended while the planes are inspected, "airspace surveillance and protection missions will continue.".
"For now, our only goal is to do our best to successfully complete the operation to find and rescue the pilot," Ko said.
Taiwan is strengthening its defense capabilities amid ongoing military pressure from China on the island, which Beijing claims as its territory. which it reinforces by sending almost daily patrols of fighter jets and warships.
At the end of last month, the Chinese People's Liberation Army began large-scale military exercises around Taiwan, involving dozens of fighter jets and warships. The maneuvers also included live fire.
Although Taiwan has its own defense industry, the island remains largely dependent on the supply of American weapons, including F-16 fighter jets, to counter Chinese firepower, AFP notes.
In November and December, Taipei signed two agreements with Washington to sell weapons to Taiwan. The first of these contracts provides for the purchase of "components, spare parts and other military materials, as well as maintenance of F-16 aircraft, including sending and returning for repairs", according to the text of the agreements published by the US Defense Cooperation Agency.