China dispatches fighter jets after U.S. health chief visits Taiwan

RESTRICTIONS: Broadcast: NO USE JAPAN, NO USE TAIWAN Digital: NO USE JAPAN, NO USE TAIWAN
Two Chinese warplanes briefly crossed the centerline of Taiwan Strait and intruded in Taiwan's air defense identification zone at 9 a.m. Monday, Taiwan's Central News Agency reports, citing the Ministry of National Defense's Air Force Command Headquarters.

According to CNA, Taiwanese Air Force patrol planes intercepted the Chinese fighter jets, which were identified as a J-11 and a J-10. The Taiwanese aircraft issued radio warnings. The intruding planes then retreated to the Chinese side of the median line.

Taiwan possesses ground-based advanced warning radars, including a PAVE PAWS unit in the northern mountains of Leshan that can track missiles and warplanes from China. Writing in Forbes, defense correspondent David Axe speculates Taiwan's armed forces would have spotted the Chinese planes the moment they took off.

The incident occurred one day after U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar's historic visit to Taiwan. Azar, the highest-profile U.S. official to visit Taiwan in 41 years, arrived in a transport plane that landed at Songshan Airport in Taipei.

RUNDOWN SHOWS:
1. Chinese warplanes crossed the Taiwan Strait median line at 9 a.m. Monday
2. Taiwanese patrol aircraft chased away the J-10 and J-11 fighter jets
3. Taiwan's radars speculated to be able to track Chinese aircraft well into China
4. Incident took place a day after Alex Azar's delegation visited Taiwan

VOICEOVER (in English):
"Taiwan's Central News Agency reports that two Chinese warplanes briefly crossed the centerline of Taiwan Strait and intruded in Taiwan's air defense identification zone at 9 a.m. on Monday, August 10, citing the Ministry of National Defense's Air Force Command Headquarters."

"According to CNA, Taiwanese Air Force patrol planes intercepted the Chinese fighter jets, which were identified as a J-11 and a J-10. The Taiwanese aircraft issued radio warnings. The intruding planes then retreated to the Chinese side of the median line."

"Taiwan possesses ground-based advanced warning radars, including a PAVE PAWS unit in the northern mountains of Leshan that can track missiles and warplanes from China. Writing in Forbes, defense correspondent David Axe speculates Taiwan's armed forces would have spotted the Chinese planes the moment they took off."

"The incident occurred one day after U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar's historic visit to Taiwan. Azar, the highest-profile U.S. official to visit Taiwan in 41 years, arrived in a transport plane that landed at Songshan Airport in Taipei."

SOURCES: Central News Agency (Taiwan), AFP, Forbes, Global Times

***
----------------------------------------­­---------------------------------------­-­----------------

Next Animation Studio’s News Direct service provides daily, high-quality, informative 3D news animations that fill in for missing footage and help viewers understand breaking news stories or in-depth features on science, technology, and health.

To subscribe to News Direct or for more info, please visit: