Timeline of fatal Taiwan military aviation incidents since 2020

Taipei, June 2 (CNA) Following the crash of a T-34 trainer aircraft at Gangshan Air Base in Kaohsiung on Tuesday, killing two pilots, the Republic of China (ROC) military has now lost 20 personnel in aviation incidents since 2020.

Below is a timeline of major fatal Taiwan military aircraft crashes since 2020:

Jan. 2, 2020: Eight out of 13 individuals aboard a UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter died when it crashed in Wulai District, New Taipei, en route to a military base in Dong'ao, Yilan County.

ROC military Chief of General Staff Shen Yi-ming (沈一鳴) and seven other staff died in the accident.

July 16, 2020: Two soldiers were killed when an OH-58D helicopter crashed at an air base in Hsinchu during the Han Kuang military exercises.

The deceased were identified as Army Major Chien Jen-chuan (簡任專) and Captain Kao Chia-lung (高嘉隆), the helicopter's pilot and co-pilot, respectively.

Oct. 29, 2020: F-5E fighter pilot Chu Kuan-meng (朱冠甍) died after he ejected from his aircraft off the coast of Taitung County during a training mission.

Nov. 17, 2020: An F-16 fighter jet went down in waters off Hualien County at night, resulting in the death of its pilot, Colonel Chiang Cheng-chih (蔣正志).

March 22, 2021: Two pilots, First Lieutenant Lo Shang-hua (羅尚樺) and Captain Pan Ying-chun (潘穎諄), were killed after ejecting when their F-5E fighter jets collided mid-air off eastern Pingtung County.

Following a series of ejection-seat failures, the military decided to replace the ejection seats in its soon-to-be-retired F-5 fleet with newer ejection-seat models.

Jan. 11, 2022: Captain Chen Yi (陳奕), the pilot of an F-16V fighter jet, died after he took off from Chiayi Air Base on an air-to-ground strike training mission with another aircraft.

May 23, 2022: An Air Force AT-3 trainer jet crashed in Kaohsiung during a training session in the morning, killing the pilot, Hsu Ta-chun (徐大鈞).

June 22, 2022: One of four crew on a Taiwan Navy S-70C anti-submarine helicopter died when it crash-landed at Zuoying Naval Base in Kaohsiung.

The victim was identified as crew chief Liu Shang-chun (劉尚鈞), who died as a result of second to third degree burns over 95 percent of his body.

Jan. 6, 2026: An F-16AM fighter jet, tail number 6700, piloted by Captain Hsin Po-yi (辛柏毅), went missing after taking off from Hualien Air Base on a nighttime training mission.

June 2, 2026: Two pilots, Lt. Col. Lu Chi-yu (盧季佑 ) and Lt. Col. Kuo Chun-nan (過俊男), died after the T-34 trainer aircraft they were in crashed at Gangshan Air Base in Kaohsiung during a simulated engine-failure routine training mission.

The cause of the incident remains under investigation.