The U.S. Navy said the unprecedented intrusion of large numbers of People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) combat aircraft into Taiwanese airspace on Jan. 23 and 24 was part of a drill simulating an attack on one of its carrier strike groups.
It said the two missions involving 28 PLAAF jet fighters, strategic bombers and anti-submarine aircraft were timed to coincide with a transit of the waters off Taiwanese-controlled Pratas Island southwest of Taiwan by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and its Carrier Strike Group 9.
The U.S Indo-Pacific Command said that on January 23, “the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group (TRCSG) entered the South China Sea January 23 to conduct routine operations.”
It said while in the South China Sea, "the strike group is conducting maritime security operations, which include flight operations with fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, maritime strike exercises, and coordinated tactical training between surface and air units."
A Navy official said the PLAAF aircraft did not come within 250 nautical miles (460 km) of the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group.
Regional security and diplomatic sources said the PLAAF was dispatched on missions on the morning of January 23, coinciding with the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group passing south of Pratas.
“They purposely conducted the drills when the U.S. carrier was passing through the Bashi Channel,” according to one source.
“That was not just meant for Taiwan. Most importantly, China is trying to tackle the issue of the South China Sea: it wants to stop the U.S. military from entering the South China Sea. China wants to diminish the United States’ weight in the western Pacific.”
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| USS Theodore Roosevelt |
On January 23, 13 PLAAF warplanes intruded into the southwest corner of Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ). The PLAAF repeated the incursion on Sunday when a larger force of 15 planes entered the same area.
Fighter planes of the Republic of China Air Force (ROCAf) were scrambled to intercept and monitor both PLAAF forays. Taiwan's surface-to-air missile batteries also tracked the intruders.
Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) said the number of PLAAF aircraft were the largest deployed in single sorties so far this year. The intruders consisted of Shenyang J-16 air superiority fighters, Xian H-6K nuclear-capable strategic bombers and Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine aircraft.
The Saturday daylight sortie consisted of one Y-8, four J-16s and eight H-6K bombers. The intruders flew at altitudes ranging from 2,500 to 7,800 meters.
What makes the weekend PLAAF sorties unique is the presence of J-16 fighters. Previous incursions mostly involved Y-8s and other unarmed reconnaissance aircraft. (Jan. 31, 2021)
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