Taipei, Aug. 6 (CNA) An open day at Hualien Air Base originally scheduled for Saturday, which aims to foster military-civil relations, was called off due to approaching tropical storm Lekima, the Ministry of National Defense announced Tuesday.
"The open day event at Hualien Air Base on August 10 has been canceled due to the threat to public safety posed by Tropical Storm Lekima," the MND said in a statement while asking for public understanding.
Lekima, packing maximum sustained winds of 101kph with gusts reaching up to 126kph, was located about 940 kilometers east-southeast of Taiwan's southernmost tip as of 2:00pm Tuesday, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB).
Based on CWB forecasts as to the path Lekima will take, it is expected to hit eastern Taiwan from Thursday to Saturday.
Hualien Air Base, located in eastern Taiwan, is home to the multirole F-16 Fighting Falcon. The open day event was scheduled to foster military-public relations as part of events to celebrate the 82nd anniversary of the establishment of Taiwan's Air Force.
The Air Force's Thunder Tiger Aerobatics Team and the main guardians of Taiwan's air space -- F-16s, Mirage 2000s and IDFs -- were supposed to perform a series of aerial stunts at an air show to be held on open day.
(By Emerson Lim)
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