An unidentified drone shut down flights at a major Taiwanese air base, exposing a gap in the island's drone defenses at a tense moment.

• A drone was spotted near Taichung's Ching Chuan Kang air base on Monday evening, halting all takeoffs and landings.
• Eight IDF fighter jets on night training had to divert to Hsinchu, and a passenger flight from Macau circled until the airspace reopened.
• Taiwan's military research institute admitted the base's anti-drone system is still being installed and is not yet operational.
• Similar systems already run at Taipei Songshan and Taoyuan airports, where they have cut runway shutdown times and helped track down drone operators.
• Flying a drone in restricted airspace is illegal in Taiwan, and aviation police are now investigating.

Outlook: Pressure will grow to finish the counter-drone rollout at military bases, with more incursions likely in the meantime.