US Expected to Readjust Tactics as Chinese Navy and Air Force Reorganize

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been transferring its navy’s aviation units to the air force since the beginning of 2023, according to a report from the China Aerospace Studies Institute (CASI), a think tank affiliated with the U.S. Air Force.

Chinese J-15 fighter jets being launched from the deck of the Liaoning aircraft carrier drills in the South China Sea on Jan. 2, 2017. STR/AFP via Getty Images

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been transferring its navy’s aviation units to the air force since the beginning of 2023, according to a report from the China Aerospace Studies Institute (CASI), a think tank affiliated with the U.S. Air Force.

“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.