Lieutenant General Liu Xiaotang, commander of the Air Force Air Defense Department, will retire at the end of the month. During his military career, he served as the colonel commander of the 951 Brigade of the Air Force, which was responsible for the air defense of the capital and the north at a very young age. At that time, the 951 Brigade had six combat battalions, namely the Tiangong Missile Battalion, the Eagle Missile Battalion, the Patriot Missile Battalion, the 35 Fast Artillery Battalion, the 40th Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion and the vehicle-mounted Tianjian Type 1 Missile Battalion. The task was extremely heavy. (File photo, taken by reporter Liu Xinde)
[Reporter Luo Tianbin/Reporting from Taipei] Air Force system generals have experienced a special situation in which important lieutenant general-level generals have retired at the age of four for four consecutive months. Following the former inspector general of the Ministry of National Defense, Lieutenant General Lu Jianzhong, who retired at the end of last month, the person who retired at the age of the lieutenant general at the end of this month is Lieutenant General Liu Xiaotang, the top operator who protects the airspace "Skynet" and the commander of the Air Force Air Defense and Missile Command. Since the Ministry of Air Defense is in charge of Taiwan's Patriot, Tiangong missiles and the Xiongsheng missile system responsible for source countermeasures, the number in active service is estimated to have exceeded 1,000. As the lieutenant general in charge of Taiwan's top strategic air defense weapons takes off his military uniform, who will take over this important position that affects the security of the Taiwan Strait and controls thousands of anti-aircraft missiles has become the most watched personnel focus in the military circles amid the recent relocation of national military generals.
Talking about Liu Xiaotang, the most profound impression on the outside world is definitely his amazing resilience to escape from death. On January 2, 2020, a Black Hawk helicopter crash shocked the country, killing eight military elites including Chief of Staff General Shen Yiming. Liu Xiaotang, who was seriously injured and covered in blood at the time, relied on his steely military will to bear the pain but calmly contact the Ministry of National Defense to inform him of the unfortunate news. After surviving the disaster, he faced the long and painful rehabilitation without any complaints and thought about returning to the army every second. This tough character of never giving up in the face of adversity allowed him to be promoted to lieutenant general in 2022, and he officially took on the important responsibility of the Air Defense Department.
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During Liu Xiaotang's four and a half years in office, Taiwan's air defense capabilities have undergone historic changes and tests. Patriot missiles have entered their 30th anniversary in service in Taiwan. He not only successfully promoted the re-assessment of missile safety of the A2 and A3 missiles in Taiwan in batches, but also implemented the transformation of anti-aircraft missiles from the early "defense of Taipei" to "mobile deployment across Taiwan." Even though a rare mid-air self-explosion accident of an Ai-II missile occurred during the precision exercise in 2025, the air defense troops led by Liu Xiaotang still showed extremely high tactical literacy. They calmly fired follow-up shots and accurately hit the target within 1 minute, proving with their strength that the air defense network he built is still indestructible.
Liu Xiaotang has performed well in various positions and is also an outstanding alumnus of Taiyi Junior High School, Chung Cheng Preparatory School, Taipei University and other schools. (Picture: taken from the FB page of Kaohsiung Dayi Junior High School)
In addition to the improvement of strike and defense capabilities, Liu Xiaotang also led the troops to create a new milestone in Taiwan-US collaboration and overseas training. Facing the important period of military establishment when the annual production of Tiangong-3 missiles of the Chinese Academy of Sciences doubled to 96 pieces, he steadily received new domestically produced missiles while quietly promoting the Patriot-3 missile unit to Palau, the second island chain, for live ammunition testing, setting an impressive record of 100% interception.
In the eyes of his colleagues, Liu Xiaotang is a rigorous but warm officer who manages the military. He is always at the forefront with actions, pulling the air defense troops from hidden air defense positions to the stage of international and joint operations. He has won the respect of US technical representatives and grassroots officers and soldiers.
Lieutenant General Liu Xiaotang rose from the ashes after the Black Hawk crash. With sweat and tenacity, he led the Air Defense Department through the most turbulent years in the Taiwan Strait. He will retire at the end of the month, leaving behind a powerful air defense skynet with more than 1,000 pieces in active service, highly automated and proven in actual combat. Who should hand this heavy burden to next? Whether the new generation of lieutenant generals will take over, or whether generals with backgrounds in the air defense system will take over, the Ministry of National Defense and the national security leadership are making final comprehensive considerations, and the succession plan for the head of Skynet will also be officially announced at the end of this month.
