The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) Anping-class missile corvettes will join the Navy and Air Force’s live-fire drills for the first time later this year, to help bolster the branch’s combat readiness, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said Wednesday.
In a report sent to lawmakers for review, the MND said that by joining the exercises, which will involve precision weapons systems, the CGA will be better prepared to carry out national defense missions during wartime.
The design of the 600-ton offshore Anping-class patrol vessels is based on the Navy’s Tuo Chiang-class corvette.
The CGA currently has four such corvettes, which are capable of traveling at over 44 knots and are equipped with a water cannon, high explosive rockets, and a 20-millimeter cannon.
Ships of this class are also fitted for but not equipped with Hsiung Feng III and Hsiung Feng II anti-ship missiles. As such, they can be easily converted into fast attack crafts in wartime.
The CGA is planning to buy a total of 12 Anping-class vessels, which, according to a plan initiated by the MND, will become part of the armed forces during wartime.
According to the MND report, the CGA’s vessels will be mainly responsible for patrols in major harbors, sending wounded personnel to hospitals and transporting supplies.
Listed under Taiwan’s Cabinet, the CGA was founded in 2000 with the integration of the Coast Guard Command and the Maritime Police and Customs into one civilian law enforcement agency.
It serves homeland security functions during peacetime and national defense missions during wartime.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel