Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense has posted its first increase in budgeted volunteer troop numbers in three years, according to the fiscal year 2027 budget recently submitted to the Legislative Yuan. Chieh Chung (揭仲), a research fellow at the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies, said the rebound suggests the ministry's efforts to stem an exodus of volunteer soldiers are finally paying off, even as he flagged a separate, longer-running problem that shows no sign of easing: senior fighter pilots continuing to leave the force.
Volunteer Troop Losses Finally Turn A Corner
Chieh said the budgeted headcount for the military's volunteer officers, noncommissioned officers and soldiers is set at 158,223 for 2027, up 4,258 from 153,965 in 2026. It marks the first increase since 2024, and Chieh called it a sign that the ministry's push to slow the outflow of volunteer personnel has begun to show results.
A Third Of Volunteer Soldiers Vanished In Two Years
The scale of the earlier collapse helps explain why the reversal stands out. Budgeted volunteer soldier numbers hit a high of 41,670 in 2024 before plunging to just 28,436 by 2026, only 68 percent of the 2024 level, meaning roughly a third of the volunteer soldier corps evaporated in two years. Chieh attributed the recent turnaround largely to increases in duty and combat-unit allowances the ministry rolled out starting in April of last year, paired with a reduction in non-essential duties. Those changes appear to have taken hold: the 2027 budgeted volunteer soldier count climbed to 30,480, up 2,044 from 2026 and the first rise since 2024.
Conscript Numbers Add To A Rare Double Increase
The rebound in volunteer numbers was reinforced by a jump in one-year mandatory conscripts, whose budgeted headcount rose to 23,102 for 2027, up 9,782 from 13,320 in 2026. Combined, the total budgeted headcount for all officers, noncommissioned officers and soldiers, both volunteer and conscripted, reached 181,325 for 2027, an increase of 14,040 over 2026's 167,285. Chieh described the simultaneous rise in both the volunteer-only total and the overall force total as an unusual occurrence.
A Pilot Retention Bonus Keeps Shrinking
Despite the broader improvement, Chieh said one figure in the budget points to a persistent weak spot. The "Flight Officer Continued Service Incentive," a bonus meant to keep experienced pilots in uniform, is budgeted at NT$755.78 million for 2027, down NT$32.35 million from NT$788.13 million in 2026, a decline of roughly 4 percent and the fourth consecutive annual drop since 2023. Measured against 2023's NT$838.28 million, the bonus has shrunk by close to 10 percent over four years, a trend Chieh said implies the pool of pilots eligible to receive it may have shrunk by a similar margin, meaning senior pilot attrition still has not slowed.
New F-16s Arriving As The Pilot Corps Thins
The concern comes as Taiwan prepares to induct new aircraft into its fighter fleet. The military's purchase of 66 new F-16C/D Block 70 jets from the United States, delayed repeatedly, is expected to see its first two aircraft arrive home soon, and the Air Force plans to stand up an additional fighter wing to operate the new jets, requiring 107 more flight officers.
The bonus in question goes to majors, lieutenant colonels and colonels who have completed the minimum required years of active duty. Jie noted that while some recipients fly Army Aviation helicopters, the large majority are Air Force pilots, who make up the backbone of flight units and the primary source of flight instructors. Because Air Force pilots become eligible to become civilian airline pilots once they clear their minimum service requirement, the ministry originally created the bonus specifically to discourage senior pilots from leaving for commercial aviation.
A Widening Gap Between Senior And Junior Pilots
Chieh warned that as the Air Force works to expand its fighter fleet and pilot ranks, four straight years of unrelenting senior pilot attrition could leave flight wings with a skewed ratio of experienced to junior pilots. Even if a wing's overall pilot-to-aircraft staffing ratio meets or exceeds requirements on paper, he said, it may still lack enough majors and lieutenant colonels to serve as instructors, flight leads, section leaders and mission commanders, meaning the Air Force's combat capability may not rise in step with the size of its fleet.
Chieh also pointed to a separate line in the Air Force Command's 2027 budget covering compensation paid to officers and noncommissioned officers who leave service before completing their minimum obligation. That figure is set to rise 31.5 percent, to NT$50.59 million from NT$38.48 million in 2026, and is now two and a half times the NT$20.26 million budgeted for 2025. Since compensation for pilots who leave early runs considerably higher than for regular personnel, Chieh said the rapid rise raises the question of whether a growing number of pilots are opting to leave before even finishing their minimum service commitment.
