TAIPEI — A search operation is underway in the rugged hills north of Taipei after a military helicopter carrying Taiwan’s highest-ranking active-duty officer made an emergency landing and disappeared from radar. Air Force General Shen Yi-ming, the chief of the general staff, is among three people unaccounted for following the incident on January 2, 2020.
The UH-60M Black Hawk vanished from radar less than 15 minutes after departing from a military base north of the city, according to air force commander Hsiung Hou-chi. No distress call was reported before communication was lost. The aircraft went down in a remote, hilly area, and the defense ministry has dispatched a team to locate the wreckage and its occupants. Rescue crews are facing severe conditions as they navigate the terrain on foot.
“It had been raining in the mountains in the past few days, the mountain roads are muddy and very steep,” said operation supervisor Chen Chung-chi. “We are racing against time.” Ground teams are contending with slippery slopes and dense forest, with the search area described as treacherous and remote.
The disappearance of General Shen represents a significant disruption to Taiwan’s military command structure. As chief of the general staff, he is responsible for coordinating the army, navy, air force, and military police. The incident comes just nine days before a presidential election, adding political urgency to the crisis.
President Tsai Ing-wen, who is seeking re-election on January 11, has canceled some campaign appearances to monitor the rescue operation. The defense ministry has not confirmed reports from a Taipei fire department official that Shen was found alive.
A task force has been launched to investigate the cause of the crash. The helicopter model involved is a UH-60M Black Hawk, part of a fleet of 60 that Taiwan purchased from the United States in 2010. Officials have not yet specified whether this particular aircraft was part of that acquisition.
U.S. arms sales to Taiwan are a perennial source of tension with Beijing, and a crash involving an American-built military helicopter carrying the country’s top general days before an election carries significant political implications. The defense ministry has not disclosed the purpose of the flight, and the two other missing individuals have not been publicly named.
The search remains a ground operation, with weather conditions turning the mountains into a morass of mud and steep ridges. The military is balancing the rescue effort with maintaining readiness, while the government faces mounting pressure as hours pass without confirmation of Shen’s condition. The search continues as rain persists and the radar trace remains cold.
