One of the new, domestic, advanced training aircraft of the Taiwan Air Force crashed on Saturday after reporting engine damage, although the crew was rescued, the army said.

The AT-5 Brave Eagle, manufactured by state Aerospace Industrial Development Corp 2634.tw with a budget of 68.6 billion T $ ($ 2.1 billion), made its first test flight in 2020.

The Taiwan Air Force said the aircraft took off from Chihhang’s Air Force Base in Taitung on the east coast of the island and then reported the damage to both engines. The crew fell parachute and was rescued, he added.

Research has been set up, the Air Force said in its statement.

It is the first such accident since the AT-5 began delivering to Air Force in 2021.

The Taiwan Air Force plans to take 66 aircraft by 2026 to replace their old predecessor, AT-3s and US-made F-5 training aircraft, which have suffered a series of accidents in recent years.

Taiwan’s Armed Forces are mostly equipped by the United States, but the government has prioritized the development of an advanced domestic defense industry, especially as China, which claims to be the island of its own, is intensifying military modernization efforts. and the exercises near Taiwan.

The AT-5 is Taiwan’s first jet to be built domestically since released the F-1 Ching-Kuo Indigenous Defense Fighter, or IDF, more than three decades ago, both jets look similar and have similar capabilities .

The AT-5 is used for both air-to-air and air-to-air training purposes and can land and take off using just a few meters of corridor.

It can be equipped with weapons, although it still remains in the test and the plane is designed to have a war support function.