Japan Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF)

Stories

Bombers over the Sea of Japan: US–Japan answer China–Russia’s show of force

Scrambling fighters almost daily to shadow Chinese and Russian aircraft around Japan

What began with Chinese carrier fighters lighting up Japanese jets with radar near Okinawa has mushroomed into a full-spectrum crisis. After China and Russia sent bombers circling Japan, the US flew B-52s with Japanese fighters over the Sea of Japan.

Updated May 11

Chinese carrier jets lock fire-control radar on Japanese fighters near Okinawa

Force in Play

Frontline force conducting scrambles and intercepts near Okinawa and the Miyako Strait

On December 6, 2025, two Chinese J-15 carrier fighters from the Liaoning locked fire-control radar on Japanese F-15s over international waters southeast of Okinawa. Japan's defense minister Shinjiro Koizumi called the lock-ons "dangerous" and "extremely regrettable," and Tokyo lodged a formal protest.

Updated May 10