China again sends warplanes to Taiwan; US aircraft carriers enter area

Robert Besser
27 Jan 2022, 14:03 GMT+10

In its largest sortie in 2022, China sent 39 warplanes towards Taiwan on January 24, amidst tensions over the self-ruled island's future, and as the U.S. is asserting its presence in the region.
Taiwan's air force scrambled its own jets and tracked the Chinese planes on its air defense radar systems, the ministry added.
The U.S. military said two of its carrier strike groups, led by USS Carl Vinson and USS Abraham Lincoln, were sailing in the South China Sea to engage in anti-submarine, air and combat readiness operations.

TAIPEI, Taiwan: In its largest sortie in 2022, China sent 39 warplanes towards Taiwan on January 24, amidst tensions over the self-ruled island's future, and as the U.S. is asserting its presence in the region.

According to Taiwan's defense ministry, the Chinese formation included 24 J-16 fighter jets and 10 J-10 jets, as well as other support and electronic warfare aircraft.

Taiwan's air force scrambled its own jets and tracked the Chinese planes on its air defense radar systems, the ministry added.

The U.S. military said two of its carrier strike groups, led by USS Carl Vinson and USS Abraham Lincoln, were sailing in the South China Sea to engage in anti-submarine, air and combat readiness operations.

Taiwan and China separated after the Chinese civil war in 1949, but China claims the island as its own territory.

Beijing has used diplomatic and military means to isolate and intimidate Taiwan, but the U.S. has continued to support Taiwan by selling it advanced weapons and fighter planes.

Over the past year and a half, Chinese pilots have been flying towards Taiwan almost daily, with the largest sortie being 56 warplanes on a single day last October.

Tensions have been high since Tsai Ing-wen was elected as Taiwanese president in 2016, with Beijing responding by cutting off previously established communications with the island's government.

Tsai's predecessor was friendly to China and had endorsed Beijing's claim that the two countries are part of a single Chinese nation.

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to New Orleans Sun.

More Information

87 ℉

Fair in New Orleans/Lakefront

Business

Section

As first in US, driverless taxis picking up customers in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO, California: General Motors' self-driving Cruise division has begun charging fares for driverless rides in San Francisco.Earlier this month, ...

Wall Street wobbles, all major indices slide, Dow drops 62 points

NEW YORK, New York - The euphoria on Wall Street of late last week was absent on Monday as all ...

May sees 10.7% surge in US home sales

WASHINGTON D.C.: In May, sales of new U.S. single-family homes unexpectedly increased, but this is expected to be temporary, as ...

Pay dispute forces British Airways' staff to OK strike vote

LONDON, England: British Airways' staff at London's Heathrow airport has voted to strike due to pay disputes. Amidst an already ...

Stocks in Asia on the rise, Nikkei 225 jumps 379 points

SYDNEY, NSW, Australia - Stocks across Asia rose on Monday, in a positive start to the week.The U.S. dollar was ...

Toyota reduces July global production goal by 50,000 vehicles

TOKYO, Japan: Amidst semiconductor shortages and COVID-19 parts supply disruptions, Toyota has reduced its July global production target by 50,000 ...

International

Section