Taiwan has received its first batch of Anduril Industries Altius-600M loitering munitions, as the US defence company sets up a branch office in the country.
An unspecified number of Altius-600Ms were delivered to the Republic of China Army on 4 August, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense.
Speaking alongside Anduril founder Palmer Luckey, who visited Taiwan for the handover of the weapons, defence minister Wellington Koo said the capability had been delivered rapidly and will be indispensable for asymmetric warfare.
The delivery comes just over one year since the US government cleared Taiwan to obtain over 1,000 loitering munitions, comprising 291 Altius 600M-Vs and 720 AeroVironment SwitchBlade 300 loitering munitions, as well as training, logistics, spares, and other support.
The Altius 600M-V deal was valued at $300 million, and the potential SwitchBlade 300 sale at $60.2 million.
According to Anduril, the Altius-600M accommodates multiple seekers and warheads, while doubling the loiter time and range of existing systems. The weapon can be launched from air, ground and sea platforms and perform a range of roles, including strike.
Anduril adds that it has set up a branch office in Taiwan and is expanding collaboration with the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology as well as local commercial partners.
“Anduril is committed to working with the US government and Taiwan to continue delivering technology in operationally relevant timelines while laying the foundation for sustained engineering and production in Taiwan in the years ahead,” says the US company.
Anduril assumed some financial risk to deliver the systems quickly, with their arrival coming just six months after contract signature. It attributes the speedy delivery to collaboration between the governments of the two countries as well as industry.
“This is an enormously consequential moment for Anduril and for the free world,” says Luckey.
“We produced Altius at risk because Taiwan needs defence capabilities now, not years from now. Anduril is committed to supporting Taiwan and our allies across the Indo-Pacific with the technology they need to deter aggression and preserve stability.”
Taiwan is building its defence capabilities owing to the growing military threat from its increasingly militaristic neighbour, China. In the event of an attempted Chinese invasion, loitering munitions would play a useful role in disrupting landing forces.
