Chinese J-11 fighter jets conduct air combat training in South China Sea

Two J-11 fighter jets of People’s Liberation Army Navy fly in formation for a sortie during an air combat training exercise.

An aviation division of the South China Sea Fleet with the PLA Navy organized its J-11 fighter jets to conduct an air combat training exercise recently in undisclosed waters in the South China Sea.

Earlier China used its latest bomber, the H-6K, in recent patrol over Huangyan Island in South China Sea, that reported by Air Force spokesman.

- ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW -

The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Karimata and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around 3,500,000 square kilometres (1,400,000 sq mi). The area’s importance largely results from one-third of the world’s shipping sailing through its waters and that it is believed to hold huge oil and gas reserves beneath its seabed.

Several countries have made competing territorial claims over the South China Sea. Such disputes have been regarded as Asia’s most potentially dangerous point of conflict. Both People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of China (ROC, commonly known as Taiwan) claim almost the entire body as their own, demarcating their claims within what is known as the nine-dotted line, which claims overlap with virtually every other country in the region.

8cdcd42dcac319055e2c27
J-11 fighter jets (c) 81.cn/ Liu Jiabing
8cdcd42dcac319055e2520
J-11 fighter jets (c) 81.cn/ Liu Jiabing
8cdcd42dcac319055e1712
J-11 fighter jets (c) 81.cn/ Liu Jiabing

 

Readers who wish to follow our weekly coverage can subscribe to the Weekly Defense Roundup.

If you wish to report a grammatical or factual error in this article, please let us know by using the online form.

Executive Editor

Support The Defence Blog

Independent reporting takes resources. Join us on Patreon.

Become a patron

More Like This

China claims its J-10 swept one of Europe’s best jets 9-0

Pakistan's Chinese-made J-10CE fighter jets went undefeated against Qatar's Eurofighter Typhoons in nine simulated air combat engagements during a joint exercise in 2024, with...

Chinese firm sells radar stealth coating for drones

Making a drone invisible to radar used to require years of classified engineering work, precision manufacturing, and a defense budget measured in billions. A...

China tells U.S. Korea commander he crossed the line

The top American general in South Korea described the Korean Peninsula as "the dagger in the heart of Asia" from China's perspective, and China's...

After China’s balloon scandal, the U.S. Army is building its own fleet

Three years after a Chinese balloon drifted across the continental United States and was shot down off the South Carolina coast, the U.S. Army...

Pentagon pushes domestic rare earth magnet production

Every cruise missile, every fighter jet, every missile defense interceptor, and every military helicopter flying today depends on a class of magnets so powerful...