Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense released two reports of large incursions by People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s aircraft on Oct. 1.
A record 38 Chinese military aircraft had violated Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) on Friday (Oct. 1, 2021), China’s national day, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) reports.
As explained by Taiwan News, the MND released two reports of large incursions by People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft on Oct. 1 on its real-time military update website. In the first report, the aircraft intruded on the southwest corner of Taiwan’s ADIZ: the MND stated that 18 Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, four SU-30 jets, two Xian H-6 bombers, and one Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare (Y-8 ASW) plane were involve.
10 Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, two Xian H-6 bombers, and one KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft entered Taiwan’s ADIZ according the second report. This time the aircraft flew through a much larger swathe of the southwestern section of the ADIZ.
Interceptor aircraft were scrambled, radio warnings to tell the Chinese aircraft to turn back were issued, and air defense missile systems were deployed in both cases, the MND said.
On Jun. 15 took place the previous largest incursion by Chinese military aircraft into Taiwan’s ADIZ, when a total of 28 military aircraft entered the southern end of the ADIZ, including one Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare plane, four Xian H-6 bombers, one Shaanxi Y-8 electronic warfare aircraft, two Shaanxi KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft, 14 Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, and six Shenyang J-11 fighter jets.
Other major recent intrusions this year included 25 on Apr.12 and 24 on Sep. 23.
As we have reported yesterday, the PLAAF showcased J-20 Mighty Dragon stealth fighter jets fitted with domestically produced engines at the Zhuhai Airshow. This represents a significant milestone as Beijing pushes the capabilities of its J-20 aircraft in a bid to rival the US Air Force (USAF) F-22.
Moreover, on Sep. 29 Wang Wei, the Deputy Air Force commander of the People’s Liberation Army, issued a veiled challenge that if the US is not scared of China’s advanced weapons “let us meet in the sky.”
Wei referenced comments about China that US Air Force (USAF) Secretary Frank Kendall made in August. Kendall said during an interview with Defense News that the focus of the USAF should be to stay ahead of China’s military technological developments to continue to field the types of weapons that “scare China.”
Image: a Xian H-6 bomber in formation with two Shenyang J-16 fighter jets (Weibo Image)
