Chinese carrier jets lock fire-control radar on Japanese fighters near Okinawa
Force in Play
A rare radar lock-on over the Miyako–Okinawa corridor exposes how Taiwan tensions are pulling Japan and China into a high‑risk air and sea confrontation.
A rare radar lock-on over the Miyako–Okinawa corridor exposes how Taiwan tensions are pulling Japan and China into a high‑risk air and sea confrontation.
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.
The lock-ons occurred in two encounters lasting roughly three minutes and thirty minutes respectively. Militaries treat radar lock as a step preceding weapons launch. This was the first publicly confirmed fire-control radar lock between Chinese and Japanese aircraft since a 2013 incident when a Chinese frigate locked weapons radar on a Japanese destroyer near the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands.
The incidents followed a month of intensifying friction after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on November 7 that a Chinese military move against Taiwan could justify Japanese involvement under collective self-defense laws. China responded with diplomatic protests, travel warnings, increased coast guard and drone activity around the Senkaku Islands, and a standoff with Japan on December 2. Against hundreds of annual scrambles and expanding Chinese carrier drills through the Miyako Strait, the lock-ons have raised concerns in Tokyo, Washington, Canberra, and Taipei that a miscalculation could drag multiple powers into a crisis over Taiwan and the East China Sea.
Number of separate instances on December 6, 2025, in which Chinese J-15s from Liaoning intermittently directed fire-control radar at Japanese F-15s near Okinawa.
3 & 30 minutes
Duration of the radar illumination
Approximate length of the first and second radar lock episodes, indicating sustained targeting rather than a brief scan.
704
ASDF jet scrambles in FY2024
Total Japanese fighter scrambles between April 2024 and March 2025, with almost two-thirds responding to Chinese aircraft, illustrating chronic airspace pressure.
464
Scrambles specifically against Chinese aircraft in FY2024
Number of Japanese scrambles responding to Chinese military aircraft, underscoring how Beijing drives most of Japan’s air-intercept workload.
110 km
Distance from Taiwan to Japan’s nearest island
Approximate distance between Taiwan and Yonaguni, highlighting why Tokyo views a Taiwan conflict as directly tied to Japan’s own security.
2013
Previous China–Japan fire-control radar crisis
Year a Chinese frigate locked weapons radar on a Japanese destroyer near the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, a key historical parallel to the 2025 air incident.
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12 events
Latest: December 7th, 2025 · 6 months ago
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December 2025
Japan protests radar locks as ‘dangerous’ and ‘regrettable’
LatestDiplomatic Protest
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi briefs reporters in the early hours of December 7, calling the radar locks “a dangerous act that exceeded the scope necessary for safe aircraft operations” and “extremely regrettable.” Japan summons Chinese officials and lodges a strong protest, demanding measures to prevent recurrence.
Japan and Australia agree to deepen security cooperation after radar incident
Alliance Coordination
At a meeting in Tokyo, Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles describe China’s behavior in the East and South China seas as increasingly coercive and agree to strengthen security ties. Koizumi references the radar lock incident; Marles calls the situation ‘very worrying.’
First reported radar lock: Chinese J-15 targets ASDF F-15 southeast of Okinawa
Military Encounter
According to Japan’s Defense Ministry, a Chinese J-15 fighter launched from the carrier Liaoning intermittently directs its fire-control radar at an ASDF F-15 over international waters southeast of Okinawa for about three minutes. The Japanese jet had been scrambled in response to potential airspace intrusion.
Second, longer radar lock-on incident over Miyako–Okinawa corridor
Military Encounter
Japan reports that another J-15 from Liaoning intermittently illuminates its fire-control radar on a different ASDF F-15 for roughly 30 minutes in the evening, again over international waters near Okinawa. No Japanese airspace is violated and no damage occurs, but Tokyo regards the sustained radar targeting as a grave threat.
Carrier Liaoning passes between Okinawa and Miyako during drills
Military Movement
China’s aircraft carrier Liaoning, escorted by three destroyers, transits between Okinawa’s main island and Miyako Island into the western Pacific while conducting intensive takeoff and landing drills for J-15s and helicopters. The radar lock incidents occur as ASDF F-15s shadow these operations.
Chinese and Japanese coast guards face off near Senkaku/Diaoyu
Maritime Confrontation
Chinese and Japanese coastguard vessels engage in a standoff around the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands. China says its ships took ‘necessary control measures’ to expel a Japanese fishing boat from Chinese territorial waters; Japan says it intercepted and drove off Chinese coast guard ships that approached a Japanese fishing vessel.
November 2025
Chinese foreign ministry attacks Japan’s talk of collective self-defense over Taiwan
Public Statement
Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning says Japan’s suggestion it could exercise collective self-defense in a Taiwan contingency is unacceptable, citing World War II–era restrictions that Japan should not ‘re-arm,’ and warns Tokyo to retract ‘wrongful remarks’ about Taiwan.
China issues travel warning and ramps up activity near Senkaku after Takaichi remarks
Diplomatic Escalation
China’s embassy in Tokyo advises Chinese citizens to avoid travel to Japan, citing an ‘unstable’ atmosphere caused by Takaichi’s Taiwan comments. Around the same time, China sends coast guard ships through the Senkaku/Diaoyu waters and flies military drones close to Japan’s southwestern islands and near Taiwan, stepping up gray‑zone pressure on Tokyo.
Takaichi states a Chinese attack on Taiwan could trigger Japanese military response
Public Statement
In a Diet session, Prime Minister Takaichi says that a Chinese attempt to seize Taiwan using warships and force could constitute a ‘survival‑threatening situation’ for Japan, potentially justifying the use of collective self-defense and SDF deployment. The remarks break with prior Japanese ambiguity and provoke a strong reaction from Beijing.
October 2025
Sanae Takaichi becomes LDP leader, poised to be first female PM
Political Shift
Conservative lawmaker Sanae Takaichi wins the Liberal Democratic Party leadership contest, defeating Shinjiro Koizumi in a runoff and positioning herself to become Japan’s first female prime minister. Her hawkish views on China and Taiwan signal a potentially firmer Japanese security posture.
April 2024
Japan reports 704 scrambles in FY2024, most against Chinese aircraft
Data Point
Japan’s Ministry of Defense announces that ASDF jets scrambled 704 times in fiscal 2024, up from 669 in FY2023; 464 scrambles (about 66%) responded to Chinese aircraft, underscoring the sustained tempo of Chinese air activity around Japan, including near Okinawa and Miyakojima.
January 2013
Chinese frigate locks weapons radar on Japanese destroyer near Senkaku/Diaoyu
Military Encounter
Japan reveals that a Chinese Jiangwei II–class frigate locked its fire-control radar on a Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer on January 30, 2013, and on a helicopter earlier that month, near the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands. Tokyo calls it a “very dangerous act” and lodges a formal protest; Beijing denies using fire-control radar and accuses Japan of hyping the incident.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
In January 2013, a Chinese frigate reportedly locked its fire-control radar—used for targeting weapons—on a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer near the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, and earlier on a Japanese helicopter. Japan publicly revealed the incidents in early February, calling them ‘very dangerous acts’ and lodging a formal protest. China denied using fire-control radar and accused Japan of fabricating the allegations and hyping a ‘China threat’, but the episode marked the most acute military standoff in the East China Sea dispute up to that point.
Then
Despite mutual recriminations, no shots were fired and both sides avoided further radar incidents in the immediate aftermath, though coast guard and air encounters around the islands continued at a high tempo.
Now
The incident became a reference point for how close China and Japan had come to accidental conflict and underscored the need for hotlines and risk-reduction measures, but it did not prevent a gradual normalization of frequent, lower-level confrontations around the Senkaku/Diaoyu area.
Why this matters now
The 2013 episode shows how fire-control radar use is perceived in Tokyo as one step short of firing and why similar radar locks in 2025 are treated as qualitatively more escalatory than routine shadowing. It also demonstrates that both governments previously pulled back from repeating such behavior for years, suggesting that normalization of radar locks is not inevitable but depends on political choices.
2 of 3
December 2018–June 2024
2018 Japan–South Korea Radar Lock-On Dispute
On December 20, 2018, Japan accused a South Korean destroyer of directing its STIR-180 fire-control radar at a Japanese P-1 maritime patrol aircraft during a rescue operation in the Sea of Japan. Tokyo said the radar irradiation was continuous and dangerous, violating the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES), while Seoul insisted it had used a different search radar and accused the Japanese aircraft of unsafe low-altitude flying. The dispute spiraled into a bitter diplomatic row, with Japan releasing cockpit video and both sides hardening positions. Only in June 2024 did the two governments agree on steps to prevent a recurrence, effectively shelving the disagreement without fully resolving it.
Then
Bilateral defense ties between two US allies deteriorated, with Japan curbing intelligence-sharing and joint exercises with South Korea for several years, even though no weapons were fired.
Now
By 2024, shared concerns over North Korea and China pushed Tokyo and Seoul to repair ties and establish new procedures to avoid repeat incidents, illustrating that radar disputes can be politically toxic yet ultimately manageable with political will and alliance pressure.
Why this matters now
This case underscores how even non-fatal radar lock incidents can poison security cooperation and dominate diplomatic agendas for years. It demonstrates the importance of technical fact‑finding, communication protocols, and political leadership in resolving disputes over what sensors were used and why—lessons that will be crucial if Japan and China wish to prevent the Okinawa incident from locking their relationship into a prolonged crisis.
3 of 3
April 1–12, 2001
2001 Hainan Island EP-3 Collision
On April 1, 2001, a US Navy EP‑3E signals intelligence aircraft flying near China’s Hainan Island collided with a Chinese J‑8II interceptor that had been conducting close passes. The Chinese fighter broke apart and its pilot was presumed dead; the damaged EP‑3 made an emergency landing on Hainan, and its 24 crew members were detained by China. The incident triggered a tense ten‑day diplomatic standoff between Washington and Beijing over responsibility for the collision and the fate of the crew and the aircraft.
Then
China detained the US crew and demanded an apology; the US expressed “regret” without fully accepting blame. The crew was eventually released, and the aircraft was later disassembled and returned.
Now
The episode highlighted the risks of aggressive intercept tactics and led to renewed efforts to improve air and maritime safety protocols, but it did not halt US surveillance flights or Chinese intercepts, leaving a persistent risk of future close calls.
Why this matters now
The Hainan collision shows how quickly routine intercepts can produce a fatal accident and international crisis, even without fire-control radar use. It is a cautionary precedent for the crowded airspace around Okinawa and Taiwan, where sustained radar lock-ons and close escorts like those reported in December 2025 could produce a similar or worse outcome if pilots misjudge distance or intent.
