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Navy investigates
disappearance of a classified chart
NATIONAL INSECURITY: The chart may jeopardize
the security of navy vessels and is the second defense mishap in months after
the MND lost a classified laptop
By J. Michael Cole / Staff reporter
Hai Ou (¡§Seagull¡¨) missile boats
are seen in this undated photo.
Photo: Military News Agency
Two classified naval charts were reported
missing when an inventory was carried out amid the decommissioning of aging Hai
Ou (¡§Seagull¡¨) missile boats last month, and the information they contained
could put navy vessels at risk during wartime, reports said yesterday.
According to the Chinese-language United Daily News, navy officers who had
custody over the documents accidentally burned one of the two missing charts
while destroying other documents, but the other, which contained classified
information about naval deployments in the Taiwan Strait, remains unaccounted
for.
The missing chart reportedly contained hydrographic data, ship information,
waterways depth, sea salt fluctuation and the locations of navy vessels and
submarines in wartime.
The information could leave navy vessels exposed if it were to fall in enemy
hands, reports said.
Naval Command said two control officers had received demerits over the affair
and added that it had turned the case to a local military court for possible
prosecution. It said it had also instructed all relevant units to tighten
management of confidential information.
The navy decommissioned its last 20 Hai Ou missile boats during a ceremony at
the Zuoying (¥ªÀç) naval base in Greater Kaohsiung on July 1. The ships, whose
design was inspired by Israel¡¦s Dvora-class patrol boats, had been in service
for about three decades. Each Hai Ou ¡X a total of 50 were deployed ¡X came
equipped with locally produced Hsiung Feng I (HF-1) anti-ship missiles.
Amid modernization efforts, three squadrons of Kuang Hua VI (KH-6) radar-evading
fast-attack missile boats have entered service since 2010. Each of the 31 KH-6s
is armed with the more advanced HF-2 anti-ship missile.
The embarrassment over the disappearance of the classified chart comes after the
Ministry of National Defense (MND) admitted last month that it had launched an
investigation into the disappearance in May of a top-secret laptop used on a
KH-6 vessel.
The computer, which belonged to the Chungshan Institute of Science and
Technology¡¦s (CSIST) ¡X the nation¡¦s top military research body ¡X had been
installed for a six-month period, during which the ship¡¦s crew carried out tests
of confidential communications equipment and procedures.
The Southern District Prosecutors¡¦ Office is handling the investigation into the
computer¡¦s disappearance.
Additional reporting by CNA
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