Taiwan’s acquisition of four General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc (GA-ASI) MQ-9B SeaGuardians will enhance the country’s ability to conduct sustained reconnaissance and surveillance in the region.
The deal, which is worth TWD 16.88 billion (USD 546.3 million), was disclosed by Taiwanese legislator Wang Ting-Yu of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) on his Facebook page on 31 August.
According to Ting-Yu, the formal procurement contract was signed on 24 August. The contract came into effect on the same day and will be active until the end of December 2029. The first UAV is scheduled to be delivered to the Republic of China Air Force’s (RoCAF’s) Hualien Air Force Base in 2025.
The deal was signed after the RoCAF Command Headquarters invited a military delegation from the United States to complete a formal procurement contract at the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). The contract was signed “following lengthy conversations between the two countries”,
Ting-Yu said.
Source: Janes