Taiwan could emerge as a competitor in the military jet trainer market. And with this goal in mind, the state-owned Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. (AIDC) intends to design and build the XAT-5. "The concept is based on the corporation's Indigenous Defense Fighter [IDF], but the internal structure may change," says Mike Lee, secretary-general of the National Defense Industrial Association of Sino and special assistant to AIDC Chairman Jason Liu. In contrast with the IDF, the XAT-5 trainer will have none of the fighter's weapons and radar, says Lee. The IDF is a light fighter developed for the air force in the 1980s, and it remained in production until 2000.
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