The last four “Brave Eagle” Advanced Jet Trainers (AJT) of the 17 scheduled for 2023 flew from Taichung to the Air Force Base in Taitung County on Dec. 12, 2023. In total, 66 jets are expected to be delivered by the end of 2026.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to unstable supply chain worldwide. Even in the post- pandemic era, the impact of supply chain disruption still lingers. Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) procurement team actively negotiated with foreign system suppliers to deal with supply chain problems. Chairman Hu Kai-hung and President Ma Wan-june also took turns flying abroad to make sure AIDC was able to receive material necessary for the project.

After solving the problem of supply chain, the assembly work was performed relentlessly, followed by ground testing. Under the leadership of AIDC Vice Presidents, directors of project, engineering, production, maintenance & avionics, and quality assurance departments gathered on the site of ground testing to maximize the work efficiency. In addition, both Chairman Hu and President Ma went to the site in person every day to monitor the progress of ground testing.

Chairman Hu said that AIDC has spared no effort in accomplishing the mission assigned by the government. The greater the effort, the sweeter the reward. The success was achieved thanks to the hard work of AIDC staff and the support of ROC Air force and National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology.

President Ma also emphasized that AIDC has always put aviation safety and quality first. Even when under the pressure of meeting the deadline, the assembly and quality assurance staff still strictly monitored every detail. The result AIDC achieved today was a testament to AIDC’s strength.