TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Air Force resumed F-16V flights at Hualien Air Base (花蓮空軍基地) on Monday (Jan. 12), one week after a crash left Capt. Hsin Po-i (辛柏毅) missing. The resumption follows completion of the "Tian An 2" (天安2號) Special Inspection. Maj. Gen. Hu Chung-hua (胡中華) of the Fifth Wing (第五聯隊) personally led the mission briefing and pre-flight checks.
The Air Force confirmed the jet experienced navigation system anomalies prior to the crash, raising questions about aircraft readiness. Investigators are examining whether the Embedded Global Positioning/Inertial Navigation System (EGI) fault reported on Saturday (Jan. 4) caused the accident. The immediate priority remains locating and recovering the jet's wreckage.
Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said intermittent signals have been detected from the black box. He stated that recovery efforts will intensify once weather conditions improve. The Navy and Coast Guard have deployed 62 vessels and drones in the search effort off Taiwan's eastern coast.
The Second Operations Zone has mobilized 1,206 personnel to locate the missing pilot and aircraft wreckage. The large-scale operation demonstrates Taiwan's commitment to recovering Capt. Hsin and determining what caused the F-16V to go down.
