PHOTO ESSAY/Weapons hot: Taipei defense expo showcases Taiwan's latest weaponry, drones

Taipei, Sept. 18 (CNA) The Taipei Aerospace & Defense Exhibition opened Thursday, showcasing a plethora of new military systems and unmanned vehicles produced by Taiwan and other countries.

Inside the pavilion of Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND), hardware procured from other countries or developed by Taiwan was displayed in four different sections -- joint operations weapons, unmanned systems, dual-use technologies, and talent recruitment.

In the unmanned systems section, Taiwan's National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) presented the payload version of its Albatross II.

The model, developed by NCSIST and Taiwan's GEOSAT Aerospace & Technology Inc., was first displayed at the 2023 edition of the biennial expo and was twice as large as the first-generation model.

While the 2025 model is still the same size as the 2023 version, it has an increased payload capability under its long wings.

The Albatross II can now carry a buoy pod that can be deployed into the ocean for maritime or naval purposes.

It can also carry a model of Mighty Hornet loitering munition, Taiwan's version of the American-made Switchblade 300, which is also on display in the unmanned systems section of the MND pavilion.

The two loitering munitions are suicide drones that can carry out one-way attacks by crashing into their targets and detonating.

The NCSIST also presented a prototype cruise missile that was developed in collaboration with an American defense technology company, Anduril Industries, and a subsonic aerial target drone that was produced in partnership with another U.S. company, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.
  
The NCSIST and Anduril presented the Low-Cost Autonomous Cruise Missile that was based on Anduril's own Barracuda-500, a medium-range turbojet-powered cruise missile.

The land-mobile missile, which is still under development, could be deployed against targets at sea and on land when it is completed.

Meanwhile, the NCSIST's Mighty Hornet IV multipurpose drone, based on Kratos' MQM-178 Firejet model, has the capability to conduct long-range flights of up to 1,000 kilometers.

The Taiwan pavilion's joint operations section highlights 20 new systems, including the M1A2T tank, the HIMARS rocket system, the Chiang Kung missile, and the TOW 2B anti-tank system mounted on Humvees, along with models of the Brave Eagle trainer jet and a light frigate.