TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Army trained in tactics to thwart a PLA assault on the Tamsui River on Tuesday.
The Army entered its second day of five-day combat readiness drills that started on Monday. The objective of the Tuesday drills was to block Chinese hovercraft and naval vessels from advancing up the Tamsui River to attack Taipei.
At 9 a.m., the Army's 53rd Engineering Corps conducted a river obstruction exercise in the Tamsui River, deploying M3 Amphibious Rigs and assault boats to set up two layers of river barriers using oil drums and floating platforms.
The first layer near the river mouth was composed of floating platforms, oil drums, and TNT explosives. The oil drums are to be detonated by TNT, creating an explosion that would either damage the hulls of PLA hovercraft attempting to enter the river or cause them to capsize. The second layer, located upstream, consisted of floating platforms combined with anti-personnel mines and steel hedgehogs.
This second set of obstacles is intended to damage approaching PLA vessels attempting to enter the Tamsui River by triggering explosions upon contact.
The Army's engineer units have reportedly pre-positioned floating bridge vehicles and obstruction materials in Tamsui to ensure rapid deployment in case of conflict.
While the 53rd Engineer Corps was deploying the river barriers, an Army AH-64E Apache helicopter was seen flying over the Tamsui River. It was reportedly conducting an aerial reconnaissance mission near the Port of Taipei in Bali at the military’s command, coordinating air-ground operations with the Tamsui River defense units.
Defense of the Tamsui River has become a key focus in the capital's defense strategy. To prevent the PLA from using hovercraft and boats to navigate upriver from the river mouth and land in areas like Wanhua and Dazhi, the military has practiced obstruction measures in the Tamsui River during Han Kuang military exercises.
During last July’s Han Kuang 40 live-fire exercise, the 53rd Engineering Corps conducted a similar drill at the same location.
