“By mid-2023, the PLA transferred the majority of PLAN [People’s Liberation Army Navy] fighter, bomber, radar, air defense, and airfield units to the PLA Air Force (PLAAF),” the report said.
“In total, the PLA transferred at least three fighter brigades, two bomber regiments, three radar brigades, three air defense brigades, and numerous airfield stations.”
The reorganization will place greater demands on the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) theater joint command system, as the navy will need to leverage kinetic capabilities from other service branches, the report said.
Additionally, it said that the transfer of JH-7 and H-6 aircraft strips the navy of most of its aerial minelaying capabilities.
Carrier-Based Aviation Force
The report also outlined how the changes will allow the PLAN to focus on its aircraft carriers.“In addition to the improvements to PLA air operations, this realignment supports the PLAN’s long-term ambitions to build out a mature carrier-based aviation force,” the report said.
“By divesting themselves of thousands of billets, multiple pieces of infrastructure, and numerous airframes, the PLAN is now free to pursue a more carrier-centric force within the constraints of its current level of resourcing.
“Currently, the PLAN fields two carrier-based fighter brigades and there are indications that PLAN J-15 carrier-based fighters now frequently operate out of one of the PLAN’s Feidong Airfield in Eastern Theater Command.”
Carl Schuster, former director of operations at U.S. Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center, told The Epoch Times that the reorganization may streamline the administrative structure of the Theater Commands air force.
He noted the reorganization is placing all of what used to be part of the PLA Navy’s air attack, defense, electronic warfare, and surveillance assets under one single air force service component
It will, however, reduce the capabilities of the navy as it adds another layer of administration for naval air operations, especially in quick-response situations.
Mr. Schuster said PLAN’s units operating east of the chain of islands encompassing Japan, Taiwan, portions of the Philippines, and Indonesia might not enjoy as responsive air power support as in the past.
He said the United States would need to respond to the changes.
“The U.S. will have to modify its wargame scenarios and tactics since this reorganization means PLA Theater Command, PLA Air Force can concentrate more air power more rapidly,” he said.
In response to The Epoch Times’ inquiries on the PLA reorganization, U.S. Department of Defense spokesman Lt. Martin Meiners recommended the “China Military Power Report 2022.”
In particular, the report states that the 2022 National Security Strategy identifies the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the only competitor with the intent and, increasingly, the capacity to reshape the international order.
The CCP also presents the most consequential and systemic challenge to U.S. national security and the free and open international system, said the report.
“It is important to understand the contours of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) way of war, survey its current activities and capabilities, and assess its future military modernization goals,” the report stated.
