PLA carries out South China Sea minesweeping drill
- Southern Theatre Command announces fourth monthly exercise to hone its countermining operations
- Anti-mine operations would play a key role in any attack on Taiwan
The mission was conducted by a minesweeping brigade that included the Type 082-II minesweepers Hejian and Chishui, according to a statement by the PLA.
It appears this is the first maritime training exercise Hejian has taken part in since it entered service.
It is the fourth consecutive month that the navy carried out minesweeping drills, which would be a key task in the event of conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
According to the statement, several ships took part in the operation, which tested the formation’s planning, communications and emergency response capability.
The ships Hejian and Chishui successfully cleaned floating and underwater mine targets, it added, and the formation conducted practised firing artillery and dropping mine-killing equipment.
The ships also discovered an unidentified foreign vessel carrying out illegal fishing in nearby waters, which was warned and expelled by the formation.