Chinese PLA bombers carry out night raid drills around Taiwan and East China Sea

More than 10 bombers took part in six-hour training exercise, Eastern Theatre Command said

Drills come as PLA steps up mobilisation and strike practice in the region amid warming Taiwan-US ties it has labelled ‘collusion’

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The PLA bombers “reached the enemy location and simulated missile attack exercises”, CCTV reported. Photo: CCTV

Published: 8:30pm, 2 Jun 2022

The Chinese military arm watching the area around Taiwan recently carried out six hours of nighttime bomber flight training, state media reported on Wednesday.

The bombers were part of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command, which supervises the situation across the Taiwan Strait and also part of the East China Sea.

“More than 10 bombers of various types, equipped with weapons, took off in tandem. They reached the enemy location and simulated missile attack exercises,” mainland state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The Eastern Theatre Command has launched a series of real-life exercises in recent days. Photo: 81.cn

The drills were carried out to test the PLA Air Force’s mobilisation and striking capabilities, the report said.

Night drills have been ramped up since 2020, as the force seeks to enhance strike abilities for both day- and nighttime combat.

It has launched a series of real-life military exercises in recent weeks, in a bid to intensify “realistic combat” training in the East China Sea as tensions boil over with Taiwan, which Beijing sees as breakaway territory to be reunited by force if needed.

This has coincided with successive visits to Taiwan by American lawmakers stressing their support for the self-governed island, and repeated apparent fumbling from President Joe Biden on the US policy of “strategic ambiguity” on Taiwan, which the White House has then hastened to walk back.

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