Taiwanese air force to retire F-5 jets after more than half a century

Taipei, June 11 (CNA) Taiwan's Air Force will officially retire its F-5 series jets on July 4 at Hualien Air Base, Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said Wednesday.

Koo made the statement the same day he attended a meeting of the Legislative Yuan Foreign and National Defense Committee to brief lawmakers on the implementation and effectiveness of the Air-Sea Combat Power Improvement Plan and other matters.

Koo said there are plans to produce a commemorative video so the public can "witness the glory" of the fighter jet's retirement ceremony.

At the legislative meeting, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said the F-5 jets had defended Taiwan's airspace.

The Republic of China Air Force, the official name of the aviation branch of Taiwan's military, began operating F-5A/B fighter jets in 1965.

In 1973, Taiwan partnered with Northrop Corp. to produce the F-5E model domestically under what became known as the Tiger Peace Project. The first Taiwan-built F-5E rolled out the following year.

Taiwan manufactured a total of 308 jets under the project, including 242 single-seat F-5Es and 66 twin-seat F-5Fs.

The F-5 served as Taiwan's main combat aircraft from the 1970s through the 1990s before being reassigned for training purposes.

The F-5E/F jets ended their training role as the Air Force continued receiving Brave Eagle jet trainers developed under Taiwan's indigenous aircraft program.

The F-5s were removed from combat standby duties at the end of last year, and only a small number of F-5F aircraft remain in service to support RF-5E reconnaissance operations at Hualien.