Japan scrambling warplanes as often as during Cold War era

China apologise?

What an incredible waste of money!

Flying a military jet costs 40,000 dollars per hour.

The Osprey costs DOUBLE that.

Put that money to peaceful use and we would have peace.

BertieWoosterApr. 16, 2015 - 07:57AM JST

What an incredible waste of money!

Yes, it is waste of money, and China should compensate Japan for the waste.

Kudos to the men & women in uniform, both Japanese & American, who react to these threats. Take pride that you maintain and fly those aircrafts while securing our peace.

I have a gut feeling that these kinds of actions will be more prominent in the coming years. China may just be bullying, but Japan needs to be ready (when I say "ready," I mean build a capable military force). I'm not saying prepare for war. I'm saying, "prepare for the worst." So if it happens, then it won't be as bad. It's like a middle school child going to self-defense classes so if he does get into a fight, he knows what to do.

@Wc626 "both Japanese & American, who react to these threats".

There is nothing heroical in scrambling jets while aircrafts of China or Russia accomplish recon flights. China and Russia are closest neighbors of Japan and do routine work in airspace.

So has America ended her spy flights off Hainan island just outside of Chinese airspace so the Chinese don't have to scramble their jets....checking....no. A big fat no. And how many decades ago did America start doing that? And China is the bad guy for waiting decades for a tit for tat? You have got to be kidding me!

What's next? The local bully was justified in shaking kids down for their lunch money because he was hungry? And when one of victims stole some money back it was a clear violation of the law? What a bunch of egocentric manure!

The ministry said none of the Chinese planes violated Japanese airspace.

If Chinese planes have violated Japanese airspace, they have been already shot down. So far none of them. Currently Ospreys were violating residential air space of Okinawa and residents are losing hearing capacity.

I think missiles are more useful than fighter jets which caused fortune to build and maintain. Pilots needed to be trained for thousands of hours. One missile with multiple war heads can shoot down dozen of fighter jets. However fighter jet can not shoot down missile.

Russian activity was seen mainly as reconnaissance around Japan in April last year

Russia is closer to Japan. If Russian plane violated Japanese air space, Japanese authority will protest it. However it is unlikely it will be shot down.

If a far right guy like Abe insults all our neighbours, especially with Japan's wartime past in recent memory, then heck, what do you expect?

That's crazy! Almost 3 per day..

If China has beef with US spy flights off Hainan, then they should file a complaint with the UN. Just the like the US has against aggressive russian aces, with their bold daredevil fly-byes.

If China has beef with US spy flights off Hainan, then they should file a complaint with the UN

If Japan has a beef with Chinese military craft flying outside their airspace, they should stop hosting the U.S. military that does the same to China.

Nope. The US/JPN security framework cannot be compromised. When Japan has beef with the Chinese in these issues, bet your bottom dollar the US will throw in its 2 cents.

Heck, with Abe due in DC soon, things will git more interesting-

Very Cold War nostalgic saber rattling! I feel like wanting to play a flight sim now.

Always good to be prepared. Keep your powder dry, Japan.

China is presently building "islands" in order to extend "their" control over Asian waters. This as the US prepares to explicitly extended its defense of Japanese territories to include the Senkakus.

It'd be silly not to expect more Chinese challenges to Japan in the future, especially as China's economy cools down and its autocrats in Beijing seek to point the finger of blame towards "aggressors" outside their country...

As Japan's East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone covers virtually all the East China Sea and overlaps with the Chinese Air Defense Identification Zone, it is hardly surprising that they have to scramble their jets everyday. It would make more sense if they were to try diplomacy and agree on Identification Zones that do not overlap.

The world is clearly in a progressing division, east - west, between religious fundamentalisms and economy. As tension raises I guess everyone wonders where the igniting spark will be that set the world on fire. South China sea? Maybe it is the bubbly global economy that drives this process. It might even be globalization that is going from larva to a butterfly and a lot of people will have to pay the prize for the transformation. Lets see if UN can step up and actually do something worthy of its mandate.

That would be "air self-defense force".

The RAF are intercepting more and more Russian aircraft too... seems like the Cold War is coming back in a sequel.

What an incredible waste of money! Flying a military jet costs 40,000 dollars per hour. The Osprey costs DOUBLE that. Put that money to peaceful use and we would have peace.

I doubt it... when you have aggressive neighbours being peaceful won't stop them attacking or threatening to do so.

How many times have Chinese and Russian fighter jets have been scrambled against Japanese planes in the last year?

Anybody know?

BertieWooster,

Then tell China to grow up! Sick of all their crap!!

@Hellokitty123 China only set up their ADIZ last year. If you ask me it was China's responsibility to try to be diplomatic about it, but that would have been a first for that thug regime.

The American jets scrambling out of Atsugi Air Base in Kanagawa-ken got so bad, that Yamato-city pulled a law suit and won. Now everyone is entitled to get double glazed windows, silent doors, air con units and papered walls...plus a silent kitchen hood.

The bill for my place comes out to ¥4,245,000 Yes. That high. I have a lot of windows. Guess what the cost to me is? ¥0

Thanks for paying your taxes everyone.

I do not think the noise will be muffled though by the glass... we open our windows all year long as we are not typical Japanese cave dwellers.

@zenpun: "One missile with multiple warheads can shoot down dozens of fighter aircraft."

No, anti-aircraft missiles have one warhead. It often takes many of these missiles to shoot down just one fighter aircraft.

Chinese intrusions int the East China Sea and in proximity of Okinawa are not just a challenge to Japan, they are directed at the US-Japan alliance which stands as the region's largest obstacle to China's aspiratons of territirial expansion.

Tack the fuel and maintenance fees unto trade deals or tariffs they have with china and russia, littke at a time...

I had some friends who were posted in NATO. According to them the Russians started routinely violating European Airspace about 8 years ago. It was only a matter of time before the Chinese followed suit. China is stubborn but they have skin in the game for world trade. Russia on the other hand doesn't have a lot to lose and is quite happy playing some very dangerous games. Moreover the Anti-US/West/Japan sentiment in Russia is far worse among the general population compared to the cold war days. We're in for some very bad days.