[Large-scale PLA military aircraft operations in distant seas, suspected of major exercises]

Air traffic tracking data on November 2 indicated a significant deployment of People's Liberation Army (PLA) military aircraft early in the morning, conducting intensive operations over the waters southwest of Taiwan. By November 3, Taiwan’s military released detailed operational information for that day: from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on November 2, a total of 36 sorties entered this direction, with 28 of them crossing the so-called “median line of the strait” and operating intensively in the southwestern waters of Taiwan. According to trajectory maps released by Taiwan’s military, these PLA aircraft active in the region also traversed the Bashi Strait and proceeded eastward toward the Pacific Ocean.

Based on historical patterns of information disclosure by Taiwan’s military, such activity constitutes standard long-range maritime operations. However, this time Taiwan did not emphasize this classification.

Taiwan’s military did not disclose the specific models of the 28 sorties or the exact types of aircraft entering the Bashi Strait and the Western Pacific. Nevertheless, air traffic data from November 2 showed at least two KJ-500 airborne early warning aircraft and three aerial refueling tankers operating over the southwestern waters of Taiwan. Given operational logic, the three refueling aircraft were likely accompanying fighter jets through the Bashi Strait, providing mid-air refueling support for missions in the Western Pacific. The two KJ-500s are presumed to have one operating over the southwestern waters of Taiwan, while the other may have been positioned in the Bashi Strait or further into the Western Pacific, fulfilling roles in command coordination and early warning coverage.

If this assessment holds, the PLA aircraft operation appears to be part of a large-scale exercise. Given that the Liaoning aircraft carrier group is currently located in the Philippine Sea, the possibility of a joint exercise cannot be ruled out.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1880829840127043/

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