Taiwan has reduced the information it regularly publishes about Chinese aerial incursions, further restricting the international community’s visibility of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).
From 15-16 January, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) has started using a new, far-less-detailed format to report about PLAAF activity around the island.
While still reporting that 15 aircraft had been detected, the map provided was considerably vaguer than previous postings. It stated that 13 Chengdu J-10 sorties had been detected, as well as a Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare aircraft and an unspecified unmanned air vehicle.
Crucially, the report broke with past precedence and offered no approximation of aircraft flight paths, or the designation of “auxiliary fighters” that apparently accompanied the J-10s.
Reports in subsequent days have followed a similar pattern. Further, the maps are only in Mandarin, whereas previously they also accommodated both English and Chinese readers.
While the maps still illustrate PLAAF activity, they lack the granular detail of MND reports used for the last few years. Taiwan’s previous postings about PLAAF activity offered a unique insight into Beijing’s employment of combat and support aircraft.
In response to a query from FlightGlobal about the reason for the change,the MND had this to say: ”MND would like to focus on PLA’s activities and their range of action, with the aim of an easier grasp of the security situation for the civilians.”
The format change follows the country’s general election on 13 January, which saw William Lai of the Democratic Progressive Party voted in as Taiwan’s next president.
Although Lai was Beijing’s least favorite candidate – Beijing claims independently-governed Taiwan as its own sovereign territory – China’s military response to his election appears to have been muted. It is possible that Beijing was consoled by the opposition Kuomintang party, which takes a warmer line to China, winning a majority in Taiwan’s legislature.
The days before the election saw 114 Chinese aircraft detected, with some intruding into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ). Fighters kept a low profile, with just three ADIZ incursions in the days leading up to the election.
Balloons, however, played a prominent role, with dozens flying over Taiwan at altitudes of 20,000-40,000ft in the days prior to and after the election. Beijing’s objective was not clear, but the balloons were seen as a tactic to intimidate Taiwan’s voters.
In 2023 Taiwan detected a total of 4,679 aircraft near its airspace, of which 1,668 sorties involved ADIZ incursions. Prominent types involved in ADIZ incursions were the J-10, Shenyang J-16, and Sukhoi Su-30.
Support aircraft such as the Y-8 anti-submarine warfare aircraft and Shaanxi KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft were also prolific intruders into Taiwan’s ADIZ.
Balloon overflights only started in December 2023, when Taipei recorded six such incidents.
Updated with comment from Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense.
