TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) tracked 62 Chinese military aircraft and a record 27 naval vessels around Taiwan between 6 a.m. Friday (May 24) and 6 a.m. Saturday (May 25).
Of the 62 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, 47 crossed the Taiwan Strait median line and entered the northern, southwestern, southeastern, and eastern air defense identification zone (ADIZ), according to the MND. Of the PLA aircraft, 54 were fighter jets, and 46 crossed the median line.
The aircraft that intruded on the northern ADIZ came within 72 km (39 nautical miles) of Keelung, while those that penetrated the southeastern ADIZ came within 75 km of Eluanbi.
The 27 naval ships reported set a new record for the most detected in a single day, surpassing the 20 reported on Sept. 12, 2023, according to U.S.-based consultant Ian Ellis, the founder of IEJ Media.
The ministry monitored the situation, scrambled combat patrol aircraft, dispatched naval vessels, and deployed land-based air defense missile systems.
In addition, the MND on Friday released video footage of a Shenyang J-16 fighter jet and a Xi'an H-6 bomber taken by Taiwan F-16s that day.
The PLA's Eastern Theater Command Thursday (May 23) announced that it would conduct the “Joint Sword-2024A” exercise in the waters and airspace surrounding Taiwan. The MND slammed the exercises as an “irrational provocation" and dispatched naval, air, and ground forces to respond.
Thus far in May, the ministry has detected 359 Chinese military aircraft and 190 naval vessels. Since September 2020, Beijing has increased its use of "gray zone tactics" by operating more military aircraft and naval ships around Taiwan.
According to CSIS, 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 resorting to direct and sizable use of force."
