China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy Shandong Carrier Strike Group sailed back into the South China Sea on Thursday, ending a ten-day deployment to the Philippine Sea that began on July 9, Japan’s Joint Staff Office reported.
On Friday, the JSO issued a news release that reported on the Shandong CSG’s activities and location on Wednesday and Thursday. The JSO had earlier issued a release covering the CSG up to Monday, but Friday’s release made no mention of why there was no observation or report for Tuesday. CNS Shandong’s (17) embarked fighter aircraft conducted a total of 20 sorties on Wednesday and Thursday. During the same period, its embarked helicopters conducted 20 take-offs and landings, with the PLAN CSG exiting the Philippine Sea and returning to the South China Sea on Thursday.
Japan Air Self-Defense Force fighter aircraft scrambled in response, and destroyer JS Umigiri (DD-158) shadowed the PLAN CSG, according to the JSO release. Wednesday’s and Thursday’s locations relative to Japan’s Miyako Island and the composition of the PLAN CSG on those days per the JSO report are below:
Date: July 17
Position: 236 miles south of Miyako Island
Carrier: Shandong
Cruiser: CNS Xianyang (108)
Destroyer: CNS Zhanjiang (165)
Frigate: CNS Yuncheng (571)
Fast Combat Support Ship: CNS Chaganhu (905)
Date: July 18
Position: 360 miles southwest of Miyako Island
Carrier: Shandong
Cruiser: CNS Xianyang
Destroyers: CNS Zhanjiang and CNS Guilin (164)
Frigate: CNS Yuncheng
Fast Combat Support Ship: CNS Chaganhu
In contrast, the Shandong CSG’s last deployment to the Philippine Sea in October and November of last year was 12 days long and saw a total of 420 fighter sorties, or an average of 35 sorties per day. The nine out of ten days that the JMSDF observed for the current deployment saw a total of 260 fighter sorties, or an average of 28.8 sorties per day.
The JSO also issued releases this week on the movement of PLAN warships and a Russian surveillance ship around Japan. On July 11 at 10 a.m. local time, PLAN frigate CNS Yiyang (548) was sighted sailing south in an area 49 miles northwest of Uotsuri Island, part of the disputed Senkaku Islands held by Japan and claimed by China and Taiwan, according to a Wednesday news release. Subsequently, at noon, PLAN destroyer CNS Jinan (152) was sighted sailing south in an area 43 miles northwest of Uotsuri Island.
The two PLAN ships then sailed south in an area 43 miles west of Uotsuri Island and subsequently sailed south in the waters between Yonaguni Island and Taiwan. Jinan and Yiyang were then sighted on Tuesday at 8 p.m. local time sailing north in the waters between Miyako Island and Okinawa to enter the East China Sea. JMSDF destroyer escort JS Oyodo (DE-231), fleet oiler JS Hamana (AOE-424), a JMSDF P-1 maritime patrol aircraft of Fleet Air Wing, 1 based at JMSDF Kanoya Air Base on the main island of Kyushu, and a JMSDF P-3C Orion MPA from Fleet Air Wing 5 based at Naha Air Base, Okinawa, shadowed the PLAN ships, according to the release.
Meanwhile, a Thursday JSO release stated that at 5 a.m. local time that day, Russian surveillance ship Kurily (208) was sighted sailing northeast in an area 24 miles west of Rebun Island, which lies 31 miles off the northwest tip of the main island of Hokkaido. The Russian ship subsequently sailed east through La Pérouse Strait, which separates Hokkaido from Russia’s Sakhalin Island. Fast-attack craft JS Kumataka (PG-827) and a JMSDF P-3C Orion MPA of Fleet Air Wing 2, based at JMSDF Hachinohe Air Base on the main island of Honshu, shadowed the Russian ship, according to the release.
