Defense & Security

China Chopper Violates Japanese Airspace near Senkakus

Courtesy of the Japan Coast Guard’s 11th regional headquarters
A helicopter takes off from the deck of a China Coast Guard vessel

Jiji Press

10:20 JST, May 4, 2025

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — A Chinese helicopter flew in Japanese airspace around the Senkaku Islands for about 15 minutes on Saturday after taking off from a Chinese coast guard ship that intruded into Japanese territorial waters around the island chain in the East China Sea, Japan’s Defense Ministry said.

It was the fourth violation of Japanese airspace by a Chinese aircraft and the first since a Chinese warplane flew off the Danjo Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture, southwestern Japan, in August last year. Also, it was the third such violation around the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands, which are claimed by China.

According to the ministry and the Japan Coast Guard’s 11th regional headquarters in Naha, the capital of the southernmost prefecture of Okinawa, where the Senkaku chain is located, four Haijing ships from the Chinese coast guard crossed into Japanese waters off the islands from around 12:18 p.m. Saturday.

The helicopter took off from one of the ships and flew in Japanese airspace near the islands from around 12:21 p.m. to 12:36 p.m. before returning to the ship.

Two F-15 fighters of the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force were scrambled in response to the airspace violation.

The four Chinese ships left the Japanese territorial waters by around 1:03 p.m. The ministry is analyzing details including China’s intention.

Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takehiro Funakoshi lodged a strong protest to Chinese Ambassador to Japan Wu Jianghao, urging the Chinese side to prevent a similar incident.