TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND, 國防部) on Tuesday (Oct. 15) reported detecting 153 Chinese military aircraft sorties over the past 25 hours, with 111 crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait into western, southwestern, and eastern airspace.
This activity coincided with China's People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theater Command's (中共解放軍東部戰區) Joint Sword-2024B exercises near Taiwan a day earlier, which focused on maritime and aerial combat readiness and port blockade drills.
The defense ministry disclosed at a press conference on Monday evening that the exercises involved 17 naval vessels and 125 aircraft, including fighter jets, helicopters, and drones, with 90 entering Taiwan's response zone. The ministry noted that the 153 aircraft sorties marked a new single-day record, approaching the scale observed after former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's 2022 visit to Taiwan, when 176 aircraft sorties were recorded.
The ministry emphasized the military's vigilant monitoring and response to ensure security around the Taiwan Strait, utilizing mission aircraft, ships, and shore-based missile systems. The information released on Tuesday specifically highlighted the sorties and vessels related to the Chinese military exercises, with calculations starting from 5 a.m. on Monday, overlapping with some previously reported dynamics.
As tensions remain high, the ministry's vigilant stance underscores Taiwan's commitment to maintaining regional security amid increasing military activities.