Taiwan's Military Shows Off Latest 'Suicide Drone'
Taiwan's military has released rare footage of a "suicide drone" currently under development. The country is looking to create a drone fleet, taking inspiration from Ukraine in its fight against Russia, as threats from China continue.
Transcript
00:00In a promotional video, Taiwan's military reveals one of its newest approaches to warfare,
00:09strapping explosives to a drone, flying it through an obstacle course until it finds
00:14and hits its target.
00:16These unmanned aircraft, known as kamikaze or suicide drones, are still under development
00:22but are a key part of efforts to modernize Taiwan's defense strategy.
00:26I think it's exciting that we're seeing real progress in Taiwan embracing the uncrewed
00:32system revolution, and really seeing some purchases and development of smaller drones
00:38like quadcopters.
00:39And I think that's a very positive step when we're talking about Taiwan developing an asymmetric
00:45strategy to deter and if necessary defend the island.
00:49Taiwan is under threat from China, and it's been trying to find ways to boost its defense
00:54as Beijing has a much larger military.
00:58One strategy is to shift away from older, more traditional systems like tanks and fighter
01:03jets, instead investing in asymmetric capabilities like drones.
01:09Drones like this quadcopter cost roughly a thousand U.S. dollars, much cheaper than a
01:14fighter jet which go for millions of dollars.
01:18Given the threat Taiwan faces, analysts say the country will need to incorporate both
01:22kinds of systems into its overall approach.
01:47Taiwan has been looking closely at how Ukraine is using drones
01:50in its efforts to push back against Russia's invasion.
01:55There are now plans to build what the defense ministry calls a drone fleet,
02:00taking commercially available drones and upgrading them to a military standard.
02:05What's cool about this capability set in particular, and again sort of what we've
02:10seen in the Ukraine case as well, is these systems are all super easy to operate.
02:14I think for Taiwan it's a good strategy because at the end of the day this is about flooding
02:19the zone.
02:20It's about using large numbers of small things that will really help punch China where they're
02:26the most vulnerable.
02:28Taiwan is getting ready to conduct its first live-fire test of newly produced Kamikaze
02:33drones on Monday.
02:35If all goes well, mass production could begin in 2025, getting Taiwan's forces better
02:40prepared to deal with threats from across the Taiwan Strait.
02:43Andy Schritt and Jaime O'Connor for Taiwan Plus.