Taiwan isn’t the first nation to turn highways into runways.

The National Interest
Date: October 30, 2020
By: Michael Peck

Key Point: “The highway drill is necessary, as highway strips would be our priority choice if the runways are damaged during a war.”

An F-16 landing on a public highway, engine roaring as its wheels touch the concrete, is a memorable addition to any driver’s morning commute.

But whether this will save Taiwan’s air force from a Chinese attack is a different matter.

Last year, Taiwanese jets landed on a highway as part of a military drill—the first such drill in five years. “Three fighter jets, as well as an early warning aircraft, practiced refueling and loading missiles and other ammunition before taking off again,” according to Taiwanese media. “An F-16V jet, a Mirage 2000-5, an Indigenous Defense Fighter and an E-2K airborne early warning aircraft landed on the Huatan section of the Sun Yat-sen Freeway (Freeway No. 1) in Changhua County at about 6 a.m.”

The goal wasn’t to give local residents an impromptu air show. It was a survival exercise on how the Taiwanese air force, known as the Republic of China Air Force, will cope when its permanent air bases are knocked out. It is a near-certainty that in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, or any major conflict between the two powers, that China’s huge arsenal of ballistic missiles and strike aircraft will pound Taiwan’s limited number of airfields.    [FULL  STORY]