Taiwan scrambles fighter jets after PLA spy planes 'repeatedly' breach airspace

Taiwan's air force scrambled fighter jets to track two mainland PLA surveillance planes that intruded on the island's air defence zone, the island's military said yesterday.

One plane entered the air defence identification zone at 8.33am on Monday and another at 2.31pm the same day en route to a disputed area in the South China Sea, it said. Taiwan scrambled two fighter aircraft to track the planes.

A spokesman for the defence ministry in Beijing said People's Liberation Army aircraft conducted routine activities in the airspace on Monday, and nothing abnormal occurred.

Taiwan's cited an unidentified military officer as saying that in the past PLA aircraft had detoured so as not to enter the Taiwanese zone. By entering it this time the PLA Air Force could test Taiwan's air surveillance capabilities and its reaction to intruders, the officer was quoted as saying.

Luo Shou-he, a spokesman for the island's Defence Ministry, said: "Right after their intrusions the air force first used radio to warn the intruding planes and then sent fighter jets to track them down in line with the standard operating procedure."

Luo said he did not think the incident would have an impact on the series of political negotiations that over the past few years had steadily improved ties between the mainland and Taiwan.