Taiwan’s annual Han Kuang military exercises are set to take place from September 13 to September 17.
The annual Han Kuang exercises, first held in 1984, are Taiwan’s largest military exercises. They involve all branches of the armed forces and test Taiwan’s combat readiness in case of a Chinese invasion.
A digital wargaming component of the exercises already took place in April. But authorities postponed livefire exercises from July to September due to Taiwan’s COVID-19 outbreak.
Military authorities also say they have reduced the scale of certain exercises to minimize the risk of COVID-19 cluster infections.
Analysts say they will be paying close attention to drills on September 15 at 6:30 am. Those exercises will see a number of Taiwan’s fighter jets in action, including Taiwan-made Indigenous Defense Fighters and F-16 Block 20s. The aircraft will be simulating a response to the destruction of Pingtung military air base runways in various weather conditions.