The first-ever incursion into Japanese airspace by a Chinese military aircraft has been confirmed, according to the Defense Ministry of Japan.
According to the ministry, early on Monday morning, a Y-9 intelligence-gathering aircraft crossed the East China Sea into Japan’s Air Defense Identification Zone and was heading toward Kyusyu.
According to the ministry, Chinese aircraft were radioed not to approach Japanese airspace and Air Self-Defense Force fighters were tasked with responding.
The Chinese aircraft was reported to have begun circling over waters southeast of the Danjo Islands in Goto City, in the southwestern prefecture of Nagasaki, at approximately 10:40 a.m.
It then passed roughly 22 kilometers east of the islands into Japanese airspace at 11:29 a.m., where it remained for about two minutes.
It took off from the southeast of the islands at approximately 11:31 a.m. and departed Japanese airspace.
It then carried on circling the area. It left for the Chinese mainland at 1:15 p.m.
Throughout it all, the ministry remained silent about whether it heard back from the Chinese aircraft. It claimed that no weapon, not even signal flares, was used by the Japanese fighters to fire warning shots.
In addition to keeping an eye on Japan’s airspace and assessing the potential purpose of the Chinese military flight, ministry officials are also alerted.
The ministry says that the infringement is deeply regrettable. According to the report, the government strongly denounced the act and urged Beijing to stop it from happening again through diplomatic channels.
Chinese civilian aircraft have previously flown over Japanese territory. It was confirmed in December 2012 that a propeller aircraft belonging to the now-defunct State Oceanic Administration had entered airspace over waters off Okinawa Prefecture’s Senkaku Islands. In May 2017, a small unmanned aircraft also flew into the vicinity.
Governing the Senkaku islands is Japan. The islands are an intrinsic part of Japan’s territory, according to the Japanese government. Taiwan and China both claim them.
