Chinese series highlights PLA pilots’ efforts to protect air defence identification zone
- China’s first ADIZ was established in the East China Sea in late November 2013
- Mission details and images of Taiwan show PLA is ready for combat, expert says
The People’s Liberation Army has been deploying more advanced aircraft to the South and East China seas and the Taiwan Strait to safeguard China’s territorial integrity, experts said following the airing of a documentary series by state broadcaster China Central Television.
The PLA Air Force and PLA Navy have been scrambling aircraft to expel foreign aircraft since Beijing announced the establishment of the country’s first air defence identification zone in the East China Sea in late November 2013, the series said.
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One of Li’s missions was to intercept a suspected Japanese EP-3 spy plane that attempted to escape the detection of Chinese radar after intruding into China’s ADIZ, he told CCTV.
The documentary said Li had flown his J-10B jet fighter close to the EP-3, which was escorted by two “small aircraft”, and had fired rounds to jam its radar. His bold, aggressive move had successfully expelled the foreign military planes, it added.
According to earlier state media reports, Li’s encounters with the EP-3 happened on November 12 last year. The CCTV series, Forging Heroes to Revival, also featured another “super fearless” pilot, Liu Rui.