Overview

• On June 7 and 8, J-15 fighters from China’s Shandong and Liaoning carriers chased Japanese P-3C patrol planes for 40 to 80 minutes, crossing within 900 meters and closing to 45 meters in one pass.
• The P-3C aircraft, operated by Japan’s Maritime Self-Defence Force from Okinawa, were conducting surveillance over international waters in the Pacific.
• The Shandong and Liaoning carriers conducted simultaneous exercises in the Pacific for the first time, which Beijing described as routine training not aimed at any country.
• Tokyo lodged a formal protest to Beijing and urged measures to prevent recurrence, citing risks of accidental collision.
• Japan reported no damage to its planes or crew and pointed to a 2014 incident when Chinese aircraft flew as close as 30 meters to its patrol planes.