Chinese military sends 19 aircraft into Taiwan’s air defence zone

PLA deploy fighters, bombers and anti-submarine plane on latest in series of such missions
Unclear what prompted the activity, which comes more than two months after the last such large-scale sortie

Taiwan

Reuters

Published: 6:58pm, 5 Sep 2021

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Taiwan’s air force scrambled on Sunday in response to renewed mainland Chinese military activity, with its defence ministry reporting that 19 aircraft including nuclear-capable bombers had flown into Taiwan’s air defence identification zone.

Taiwan has complained for a year or more of repeated missions by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force near the self-ruled island, often in the southwestern part of its air defence zone near the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Island.

The latest PLA mission involved 10 J-16 and four Su-30 fighters, as well as four H-6 bombers, which can carry nuclear weapons, and an anti-submarine aircraft, Taiwan’s defence ministry said.

Taiwanese combat aircraft were sent to warn away the PLA aircraft, while missile systems were deployed to monitor them, the ministry said.

The PLA aircraft flew in an area closer to the mainland than the Taiwanese coast, roughly northeast of Pratas Island, according to a map provided by the ministry.

There was no immediate comment from Beijing.

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The last such large-scale activity, on June 15, involved 28 PLA aircraft, the largest sortie reported by Taiwan to date.

Beijing often mounts such missions to express displeasure at something Taiwan has done or at shows of international support for the democratically ruled island, especially by the United States, Taiwan’s main arms provider.

It was not clear what might have prompted the PLA to launch its aircraft this time, though a US warship and a US Coast Guard cutter sailed through the Taiwan Strait late last month.

Beijing has described its activities as necessary to protect the country’s sovereignty and deal with “collusion” between Taipei and Washington.

Military commentator and former PLA instructor Song Zhongping said Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen recently described the relationship between the mainland and the island as “neighbouring states” and Beijing had to respond strongly.

“The move was a warning to the Taiwanese authorities not to go too far on the road to independence,” Song said.

He added the PLA’s increased presence in the airspace indicated that the missions were part of regular training.

“It was more than just sending a threatening message – it was preparing for real combat,” Song said.

Taiwan’s defence ministry warned last week that the threat from the mainland was growing, saying the PLA could “paralyse” Taiwan’s defences and was able to fully monitor its deployments.

Additional reporting by Liu Zhen