TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked 12 Chinese military aircraft and four naval vessels around the country between 6 a.m. on Wednesday (April 26) and 6 a.m. on Thursday (April 27).
At 9 a.m. on Thursday, the MND said that 12 People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) military aircraft and four People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels had been tracked around Taiwan. Of the detected aircraft, five crossed the median line or entered the southwest section of Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ).
The aircraft tracked in the ADIZ included one Suhkoi Su-30 fighter jet, one Shaanxi Y-8 Reconnaissance (RECCE) tactical reconnaissance plane, one Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) plane, one Kamov Ka-28 ASW helicopter, and one Guizhou WZ-7 Soaring Dragon RECCE unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The SU-30 fighter jet crossed the northeast section of the median line.
The two Y-8 aircraft entered the southwest sector of the ADIZ just off the southwest edge of the median line. The WZ-7 UAV was detected flying in the far southwest corner of the ADIZ to the northeast of the Dongsha Islands.
The KA-28 helicopter was tracked in the southwest section of the ADIZ, just northwest of the Bashi Channel. The MND said it monitored the situation and responded by scrambling combat patrol aircraft, dispatching naval vessels, and deploying land-based air defense missile systems.
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, gray zone tactics are “an effort or series of efforts beyond steady-state deterrence and assurance that attempts to achieve one’s security objectives without resort to direct and sizable use of force.”
Flight paths of PLAAF aircraft. (MND image)
