Taiwan’s air force conducted rapid runway repair drills on Friday at Hsinchu Air Base, its closest military facility to mainland China, simulating emergency responses to potential damage from Chinese long-range strikes. The exercises, part of the annual Han Kuang drills, included clearing debris, filling craters, and deploying fiberglass mats to restore runway functionality for fighter jets.
The drills emphasized sustained air-to-air combat readiness, with personnel practicing emergency rearming of Dassault Mirage 2000-5 interceptors using Magic Missile II short-range and MICA medium-range air-to-air missiles. Pilots performed rapid scramble drills, while ground crews demonstrated the deployment of Antelope short-range mobile surface-to-air missile systems near repaired sections of the runway.
Hsinchu Air Base, located 90 miles from mainland China, houses Taiwan’s 53 Mirage 2000-5 jets, its primary interceptor fleet. The island also fields over 130 F-16 Fighting Falcons and 129 domestically produced F-CK-1 Ching-Kuo fighters, according to military records. The use of fiberglass mats for runway repairs mirrors techniques employed by U.S. forces, allowing smaller aircraft to operate amid damaged infrastructure.
Analysts note that Hsinchu Air Base would likely be among the first targets in a full-scale Chinese assault, given its proximity and strategic importance. The Han Kuang exercises, conducted annually, serve as Taiwan’s largest military simulation, testing responses to potential invasion scenarios. This year’s drills included emergency takeoffs, missile deployments, and rapid aircraft rearming, all designed to ensure operational continuity under simulated attack conditions.