Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation)
The Republic of China Army’s Aviation and Special Forces Command (陸軍航空特戰指揮部) flies Taiwan’s attack and army transport helicopters — about 29 AH-64E Apaches, 61 AH-1W SuperCobras, 37 OH-58D Kiowas, 30 UH-60M Black Hawks and eight CH-47SD Chinooks — to strike a landing force at sea and on the beaches, in a command that grew out of the Army’s paratroopers and has not flown in combat.
The Taiwanese army aviation story: paratroopers, SuperCobras, Apaches and a Chinook that never defected
1944–2006: paratroopers, helicopters and one command
The Republic of China Army’s helicopters belong to a command that began with parachutes, not rotors. Chinese Wikipedia traces the 陸軍航空特戰指揮部 to the 1st Parachute Regiment, formed at Kunming on 1 January 1944, and to a Special Forces headquarters set up at Taoyuan in 1958; the two merged on 1 April 1974. In October 1979 the Army Aviation Command and the Aviation Training Centre were folded in. The joint command became the Army Aviation and Special Warfare Command on 1 October 1999 and took its present name, the Aviation and Special Forces Command, on 16 February 2006. The Army’s own organisation page lists it as one of its major commands, made up of the Special Forces Command, aviation brigades, the Flight Training Command and an air training centre. How army flying was organised before 1979 is not documented in the sources reached for this page and is left out.
The 1990s: SuperCobras and Kiowas
The modern fleet was bought in the 1990s. English Wikipedia says 42 AH-1W SuperCobras were ordered in 1992 and delivered from 1993 to 1997, and a further 21 were announced in 1997, for 63 in all; they went to the Aviation Training Centre and two attack helicopter brigades. Taiwan News reports that 26 OH-58D Kiowa Warriors were bought in 1991 and 13 more in 1997, scouts with a sight above the rotor that can find targets for themselves and others. Nine CH-47SD Chinooks were added for heavy lift. Their twin engines, Taiwan News notes, make them reliable in tropical heat. The AH-1Ws are now three decades old: a US support contract signed in January 2021 runs only to September 2027.
Apaches and Black Hawks
The next generation came from a single wave of American arms sales. In July 2007 the Army was reported to be seeking 30 Apaches, and the 2008 budget listed 60 UH-60M Black Hawks. The United States approved the Black Hawks in January 2010, splitting them three ways: 30 for the Army, 15 for the National Airborne Service Corps and 15 for the Air Force Rescue Group. English Wikipedia dates the Apache agreement to June 2011, for 30 AH-64Es; the first six arrived on 5 November 2013. They serve with the 601st Aviation Brigade at Longtan, in Taoyuan, armed with Hellfire missiles, rockets and Stingers. The Black Hawks were bought to replace the UH-1H, the Army’s utility helicopter for decades; whether any UH-1Hs still fly could not be confirmed.
Losses, and a plot to fly a Chinook to China
Accidents have shaped the fleet’s reputation. On 25 April 2014 an AH-64E flew into a three-storey building in bad weather, the first E-model Apache lost anywhere; English Wikipedia says investigators blamed a rapid descent through cloud, not the machine, and simulator training was increased. Chinese Wikipedia records two AH-1Ws lost, in 1999 and 2008, a Chinook in 2008 and two Kiowas. The worst recent accident was on 16 July 2020, during the Han Kuang exercise, when an OH-58D crashed three minutes after taking off at Hsinchu Air Base and Major Chien Jen-chuan and Captain Kao Chia-lung were killed. Espionage was a different kind of danger: in February 2025 Taiwan’s Supreme Court upheld sentences on eight officers, including a lieutenant colonel of the command, over a plot to fly a CH-47 to a Chinese navy ship near the median line for a promised US$15 million.
Training for a landing that has not come
Everything the command practises is framed around one scenario. Beijing regards Taiwan as part of China — in his New Year address for 2025 Xi Jinping said no one could stop “the historical trend of national reunification” — while Taiwan’s government, in President Lai Ching-te’s reply, called for a bigger defence budget and vigilance. The helicopters’ job in that scenario is to hit an amphibious force at sea and on the beaches, and to move troops quickly. In the annual Shen Ying exercise of May 2025 Apaches, SuperCobras and Kiowas fired Hellfires at targets at sea; in July 2025 the 602nd Brigade refuelled and re-armed SuperCobras with engines running in Taichung and at a riverside park in New Taipei; and in August 2026 seven Chinooks and Black Hawks lifted nearly 100 troops of the 564th Armored Brigade from Kaohsiung during Han Kuang 42. None of the command’s aircraft has flown in combat.
Ageing airframes and the drone question
The open question is how much longer large, low-flying helicopters make sense. In August 2026 an analyst at Taiwan’s own Institute for National Defense and Security Research urged the military to reassess attack helicopters in the light of the war in Ukraine and to look at longer-range missiles and drones. The Army opened a dedicated drone training centre in 2025, according to English Wikipedia, and in September 2026 it budgeted NT$1.44 billion for trucks that fire Hellfires, developed with the Army Aviation Maintenance Depot. At the same time it is not giving up on rotors: in April 2026 Taiwan News reported that 30 more Black Hawks were under consideration and that existing ones would be fitted to fire Hellfires and rockets. The Kiowas are nearly 30 years old and no successor to them or to the SuperCobra has been announced in the sources reached.
The Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation) in numbers
שֵׁרוּת
- שם מקומי
- 陸軍航空特戰指揮部As on the Army organisation page, which writes 航空特戰指揮部; usually shortened to 航特部. The English name used by Taiwan News is Aviation and Special Forces Command
- יוּחֲסִין
- 1944 (airborne); aviation from October 1979The command dates itself from the 1st Parachute Regiment of 1 January 1944. The Army Aviation Command and Aviation Training Centre were brought in in October 1979; the combined command took the name 陸軍航空特戰司令部 on 1 October 1999 and its present name on 16 February 2006
- חלק מ
- Republic of China ArmyOne of the Army Command Headquarters’ major commands, alongside the corps, defence commands, the Education, Training and Doctrine Development Command and the Logistics Command
- מַטֶה
- Guiren District, TainanAccording to Chinese Wikipedia; not confirmed on an official page reached
- מְפַקֵד
- Lt Gen Chang Tai-sung (張台松)In office since 16 February 2022 according to Chinese Wikipedia; not confirmed for 2026 on an official page. Romanisation ours
- חטיבות התעופה
-
- 601st Aviation Brigade — Longtan, Taoyuan
- 602nd Aviation Brigade — Taichung
- Flight Training Command — becomes the 603rd Brigade in war
Base of the 601st from Taiwan News; the 602nd in Taichung from Chinese Wikipedia
כּוֹחַ
- מסוקי תקיפה
-
- AH-1W SuperCobra — 61
- AH-64E Apache — 29
After losses: two AH-1Ws and one AH-64E
- מסוקי סיור
-
- OH-58D Kiowa Warrior — 37
37 in Taiwan News (2022, 2024); 38 in one Chinese Wikipedia table
- תחבורה ותשתיות
-
- UH-60M Black Hawk — 30
- CH-47SD Chinook — 8
30 more Black Hawks under consideration in April 2026
- נעלי ספורט
-
- TH-67A — 30
Flight Training Command
- Helicopters in all
- About 195Sum of the Chinese Wikipedia inventory (61 + 29 + 37 + 30 + 8 + 30). Not an official total; personnel figures for the command were not published on the pages reached
תַשׁתִית
- בסיסים עיקריים
-
- Longtan, Taoyuan — 601st Brigade, AH-64E
- Taichung — 602nd Brigade, AH-1W and OH-58D
- Guiren, Tainan — command headquarters
No aerodrome data for these army fields is published in Taiwan’s civil AIP
- Live-fire range
- Hengchun (Longqin), PingtungThe 602nd Brigade’s helicopter firing exercises in October 2025 and April 2026
- תַחזוּקָה
- Army Aviation Maintenance DepotCo-developed the truck-mounted Hellfire launcher with the 209th Factory
- הַדְרָכָה
- Flight Training CommandOn 1 October 2023 the command’s Guguan special forces and Pingtung airborne training centres moved to the Education, Training and Doctrine Development Command
How the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation) is organised
One Army command for helicopters and special forces, with two aviation brigades and a Flight Training Command that becomes the 603rd Brigade in war. About 29 AH-64E Apaches and 61 AH-1W SuperCobras are the strike force, with 37 OH-58D Kiowa Warriors as scouts and 30 UH-60M Black Hawks and eight CH-47SD Chinooks for lift. The figures come from Chinese Wikipedia and Taiwan News; the Army publishes no fleet totals.
Aviation and Special Forces Command
One of the Republic of China Army’s major commands, owning both the Army’s helicopters and its special forces; Chinese Wikipedia places its headquarters at Guiren, Tainan, and names Lt Gen Chang Tai-sung as commander from 16 February 2022, which no official page reached confirms for 2026. The command took its present name on 16 February 2006.
601st Aviation Brigade
The Apache brigade: Taiwan News places it in Longtan District, Taoyuan, with AH-64E Apaches and UH-60M Black Hawks, and it shares the 37 OH-58D Kiowa Warriors with the 602nd Brigade and the Flight Training Command.
602nd Aviation Brigade
The SuperCobra brigade, in Taichung according to Chinese Wikipedia, flying AH-1Ws, OH-58Ds and UH-60Ms; Taiwan News reported it firing at the Hengchun range in October 2025 and April 2026 and practising hot refuelling in July 2025.
Flight Training Command
Trains the Army’s helicopter pilots on 30 TH-67As and becomes the 603rd Aviation Brigade in war, according to English Wikipedia; its base was not confirmed in the sources for this page.
CH-47SD and UH-60M fleet
Eight CH-47SD Chinooks (nine bought, one lost in 2008) and 30 UH-60M Black Hawks; in Han Kuang 42 in August 2026 seven of them lifted nearly 100 troops from Dagangshan in Kaohsiung. Their allocation between the brigades is not given in the sources.
Army Aviation Maintenance Depot
Keeps the fleet flying and co-developed, with the 209th Factory, the truck-mounted Hellfire launcher in the 2027 budget.
What the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation) flies today
כל סוג בטעינה, מקושר לדף ספר החיות שלו במידה וקיים כזה. ספירות הן מטוסים בספרים, לא מטוסים זמינים ביום נתון.
| סוּג | תַפְקִיד | בשירות | מֵאָז | יחידות | הערות | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| בואינג AH-64E אפאצ'י גרדיאןבשירות | מסוק תקיפה | 29 | 2013 | 30 bought; one destroyed on 25 April 2014, leaving 29 (Chinese Wikipedia). | ||
| בל AH-1W סופרקוברהבשירות | מסוק תקיפה | 61 | 1993 | 63 bought (42 ordered in 1992 and 21 in 1997); two lost, in 1999 and 2008, leaving 61 (Chinese Wikipedia). | ||
| בל OH-58D קיווה ווריורבשירות | מסוק סיור חמוש | 37 | 37 active according to Taiwan News (2022 and 2024). 39 bought (26 in 1991 and 13 in 1997); Chinese Wikipedia records two lost, in 2001 and 2020.
יוֹתֵרThe Chinese Wikipedia article on the Army gives 38. |
|||
| סיקורסקי UH-60M בלאק הוקבשירות | מסוק שירות | 30 | 30 of the 60 UH-60Ms the US approved in January 2010; the other 30 went to the National Airborne Service Corps and the Air Force Rescue Group. | |||
| Boeing CH-47SD Chinookבשירות | מסוק תובלה כבד | 8 | Nine bought; one lost in 2008, leaving eight (Chinese Wikipedia). | |||
| Bell TH-67A Creekבשירות | מסוק אימון | 30 | 30 (Chinese Wikipedia). |
Every type the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation) has retired
1 types, from the Bell UH-1H Iroquois to the Bell UH-1H Iroquois. נתוני השיא הם מספר שלדי המטוסים שנלקחו תחת אחריות לאורך כל חיי השירות, לא מספר כוחות הצי בכל תאריך נתון.
| סוּג | תַפְקִיד | שִׂיא | מוגש | הוחלף על ידי | הערות | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| בל UH-1H אירוקווי | מסוק שירות | UH-60M | Not confirmed. The Chinese Wikipedia article on the Army still lists 40 in its table; the English article lists none among current types. |
Where Taiwan’s Army helicopters fly from
פינים שחורים הם בסיסים פעילים. The 601st Brigade’s Apaches are at Longtan in Taoyuan, home of the Army Command Headquarters since 1972, the 602nd Brigade is in Taichung and the command’s headquarters at Guiren in Tainan. Army fields are not published in Taiwan’s civil AIP, so most carry no pin; Hsinchu, an air force base, is shown because Army helicopters use it in exercises.
| בָּסִיס | ICAO | סטָטוּס | מַסלוּל הַמרָאָה | יחידות ומטוסים |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guiren army aviation baseAviation and Special Forces Command headquartersTainan City, Guiren District | פָּעִיל |
|
||
| הסינצ'והעיר סינצ'ו, מחוז צפון | RCPO | פָּעִיל |
|
|
| Longtan army aviation base601st Aviation BrigadeTaoyuan City, Longtan District | פָּעִיל |
|
||
| Taichung army aviation base602nd Aviation Brigadeטאיצ'ונג סיטי | פָּעִיל |
|
אף בסיס אווירי לא תואם את החיפוש הזה.
Who is stationed where in the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation)
יחידות מעופפות לפי בסיס, היחידות הנוכחיות תחילה. Army aviation units are numbered brigades, the 601st and 602nd, under the Aviation and Special Forces Command; the Flight Training Command becomes the 603rd in war. Where a unit’s base rests on Chinese Wikipedia alone, the entry says so.
- 601st Aviation BrigadeAviation brigade (attack and utility helicopters) · active
- AH-64E אפאצ'י, UH-60M בלאק הוק, OH-58D Kiowa Warrior
- 602nd Aviation BrigadeAviation brigade (attack, scout and utility helicopters) · active
- AH-1W סופרקוברה, OH-58D קיווה ווריור, UH-60M בלאק הוק
- Aviation and Special Forces Command headquartersמפקדת הפיקוד · פעילה
- Flight Training CommandHelicopter flying training (603rd Aviation Brigade in war) · active
- TH-67A, AH-1W סופרקוברה, OH-58D Kiowa Warrior
- Aviation and Special Forces Command OH-58D detachment (Han Kuang 36)2020–2020
- OH-58D Kiowa Warrior
אף יחידה לא תואמת את החיפוש.
Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation) milestones, 1914 to today
1 January: the 1st Parachute Regiment is formed at Kunming, the start of the lineage the command claims.
A Special Forces headquarters is set up at Taoyuan.
1 April: airborne and special forces merge into one command.
October: the Army Aviation Command and the Aviation Training Centre join the airborne and special forces command.
26 OH-58D Kiowa Warriors are bought, according to Taiwan News.
42 AH-1W SuperCobras are ordered; deliveries run from 1993 to 1997.
21 more AH-1Ws and 13 more OH-58Ds are ordered.
An AH-1W is lost. 1 October: the joint command is renamed the Army Aviation and Special Warfare Command (航特部).
16 February: the command takes its present name, Aviation and Special Forces Command.
An AH-1W and a CH-47SD are lost, according to Chinese Wikipedia.
January: the United States approves 60 UH-60M Black Hawks for Taiwan, 30 of them for the Army.
5 November: the first six AH-64E Apaches arrive.
25 April: an AH-64E crashes into a building in bad weather, the first E-model Apache lost anywhere.
16 July: an OH-58D crashes at Hsinchu during Han Kuang, killing both pilots.
1 October: the command’s Guguan and Pingtung training centres move to the Education, Training and Doctrine Development Command.
14 February: the Supreme Court upholds sentences in the Chinook defection plot. May: Shen Ying live-fire exercise with Hellfires at sea.
April: the 602nd Brigade exercises at Hengchun and 30 more Black Hawks are reported under consideration. August: helicopters airlift troops in Han Kuang 42.
Everything people ask about the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation)
What is the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command?
What is the official name, and is there an English Wikipedia article?
Which helicopters does Taiwan’s Army fly?
Where are Taiwan’s Apaches based?
How many Apaches has Taiwan lost?
What was the Chinook defection plot?
Has Taiwan’s Army aviation ever flown in combat?
Is Taiwan buying more helicopters?
What happened in the 2020 Kiowa crash?
Read the aircraft the Republic of China Army Aviation and Special Forces Command (aviation) flew
כל סוג עם עמוד בספר החיות, תחילה בשירות, ואז לפי השנה בה עזב את הצי.
כל עובדה, נבדקה
- ROC Army: 組織架構 (organisational structure)Lists the 航空特戰指揮部 (Aviation and Special Forces Command) among the Army’s major commands, made up of the Special Forces Command, aviation brigades, the Flight Training Command and an air training centre.
- ROC Army: 沿革 (history of the Army Command Headquarters)Dates of the Army headquarters: 1944 origins, the move to Longtan in May 1972, renamed 1 January 2005 and 17 February 2006. Says nothing about aviation.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan’s Kiowa helicopters to undergo maintenance repairs (6 May 2024)NT$2.08 billion maintenance tender; 26 Kiowas bought in 1991 and 13 in 1997; 37 active with the 601st and 602nd brigades and the Flight Training Command.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan Army Kiowa helicopter makes emergency landing in Tainan (23 November 2022)Night training, 22 November 2022, safe landing in a field south of Tainan Airport; 37 OH-58Ds.
- Taiwan News: 2 pilots killed after helicopter crashes during Taiwan war games (16 July 2020)OH-58D crash three minutes after take-off at Hsinchu Air Base during Han Kuang; Maj. Chien Jen-chuan and Capt. Kao Chia-lung killed; third OH-58D accident in two years.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan sentences officers in Chinook defection plot (14 February 2025)Plot to fly a CH-47 to a Chinese navy ship near the median line for a promised US$15 million; Supreme Court upheld sentences on 14 February 2025.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan Army helicopters conduct live-fire missile drills (15 May 2025)Shen Ying live fire: 601st and 602nd brigades and the Army Aviation Training Command fired Hellfires from AH-64E, AH-1W and OH-58D at targets at sea.
- Taiwan News: Military conducts hot refueling drills in Taichung and New Taipei (17 July 2025)602nd Brigade SuperCobras refuelled and re-armed with engines running; Apaches and Black Hawks also took part.
- Taiwan News: Army stages live-fire helicopter drills in southern Taiwan (28 October 2025)602nd Brigade SuperCobras, Kiowas and Black Hawks at the Hengchun Joint Training Base.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan Army holds 3-day helicopter exercise in Pingtung (6 April 2026)602nd Brigade AH-1W, OH-58D and UH-60M at Longqin, Hengchun; Taiwan considering 30 more Black Hawks and arming the existing ones with Hellfires and rockets.
- Taiwan News: Military helicopters on display in Taichung (2 April 2026)601st Aviation Brigade AH-64E and UH-60M; the Apache is "typically deployed in Taoyuan’s Longtan District".
- Taiwan News: Taiwan Army helicopters attract crowd at National Central University (15 July 2026)601 Aviation Brigade, based in Longtan, Taoyuan; Apache armament.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan kicks off Han Kuang 42 military exercise (5 August 2026)Seven CH-47SD and UH-60M helicopters airlifted nearly 100 troops of the 564th Armored Brigade from Dagangshan, Kaohsiung.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan Army to spend NT$1.44 billion on converting cargo trucks to fire Hellfire missiles (5 September 2026)In the 2027 budget; developed by the 209th Factory and the Army Aviation Maintenance Depot.
- Taiwan News: Anduril highlights Altius-600M live-fire tests in Taiwan (9 September 2026)291 Altius-600M bought and delivered; Palmer Luckey suggested mounting the drone on Taiwan’s UH-60Ms.
- Taiwan News: Defense analyst urges Taiwan to reassess attack helicopters (19 August 2026)INDSR analyst Sheu Jyh-shyang on the vulnerability of attack helicopters to modern air defences.
- חדשות טייוואן: צבא טייוואן מקיים חזרה על מעבר המטס ליום הלאומי (30 בספטמבר 2026)Chinook, Black Hawk, Apache and SuperCobra helicopters in the National Day rehearsal over the Presidential Office.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan’s AH-64 Apaches sport fierce tiger shark paint (25 September 2023)Open day at the Army’s Hukou base, 24 September 2023, about 110,000 visitors.
- Taiwan News: Taiwan defense minister presents helicopters and Humvees to Paraguay (15 August 2019)Two UH-1H helicopters donated to Paraguay; the article does not say which Taiwanese service flew them.
- חדשות טייוואן: שי טוען שאיחוד טייוואן הוא בלתי נמנע (1 בינואר 2025)Xi Jinping’s New Year address and President Lai Ching-te’s reply.
- MiGFlug Order of Battle: Republic of China Air Force bases (Hsinchu)The Hsinchu row, coordinates and history are kept in the air force dataset.
הנתונים אומתו בתאריך 01-10-2026. דפי סדר הקרב נוצרים מחדש ממערך נתונים יחיד; אם מספר כאן אינו תואם לדף בספר החיות, דף זה הוא העדכני מבין השניים.
Photographs: Photo: 玄史生 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Photo: Ivekbeg5 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: HawkeyeUK / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Photo: 玄史生 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)