On May 21, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) announced that Hsu, Szu-chien, Vice Minister for Policy, was accompanied by Alexander Yui, Ambassador of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States (TECRO); Major General Tian, Zhong-Yi, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff; and Rear Admiral Wei, Chung-Hsing, Defense Attache of the TECRO Defense Mission, on a visit to the F-16 Block 70 production line in South Carolina, United States, on March 16 (Eastern Time). During the visit, the delegation witnessed the first Lockheed Martin aircraft complete its acceptance check flight.
In addition to taking a photograph with the assembled aircraft, the delegation also inspected the production status of the aircraft ordered for ROCAF. Lockheed Martin noted that it had already assigned hundreds of personnel to the production line. With the production line fully staffed and equipped, two shifts worked tirelessly to ensure that production would be completed on schedule. As the F-16 Block 70 is specifically designed for Taiwan, the compatibility of its systems, wiring, and software must be continuously tested and adjusted, with any necessary modifications also made to the production line. Such procedures are absolutely necessary to ensure the quality of the assembled aircraft and the safety of the pilots.
Assembled aircraft that have completed Lockheed Martin’s acceptance check flights will undergo a final acceptance check flight by the U.S. Government before being delivered to Taiwan later in 2026.
The MND noted that the delivery of the aircraft will be accelerated through R.O.C.–U.S. security cooperation mechanisms.
