AIR

POWER

(^42) | AsiAn MilitAry review |
by Alan Warnes

T

he South China Sea occupies

a central position regarding

the Indo-Pacific Sea Lines

of Communication (SLOC)

connecting Europe, the Middle

East and south Asia to south-east

Asia and North America. It needs

to monitored around the clock by

Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPAs). Ristian

Superiyanto, associate research fellow at

the S. Rajaratnam School of International

Studies (RSIS) in Singapore, told the

author in November 2014: “These

SLOCs are underpinning the economic

attractions of the region where there is a

significant amount of trade carried out (on

the high seas) and by ship. The shipping

density centres around the South China

Sea. Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs)

are also being challenged and economic

sovereignties are being ignored by the

PRC where there are several claimants

to a number of areas of the South China

Sea.” This stretch of water is home to

a number of maritime and territorial

Maritime surveillance is an important requirement for most countries

with interests in the South China Sea. The ongoing geopolitical

situation in the region and as a whole, means that most nations need

to keep an eye on their neighbours, particularly the People’s Republic

of China (PRC).

disputes, mainly focused on the Spratly

and Paracel archipelagos parts, or all, of

which are claimed by Brunei-Darussalam,

Malaysia, the Philippines, the PRC, the

Republic of China and Vietnam.

The Main Threat

The Beijing government has drawn up a

demarcation line in the South China Sea,

known as the ‘nine-dash line’ and claims

all the territory behind it, which includes

the Spratley and Paracel archipelagos.

Beijing’s motivation is thought to centre

on the PRC’s hunger for natural resources:

A report by the United States Geological

Survey in 2010 estimated that the South

China Sea could hold oil reserves of at

least 750 million barrels of oil. To this end,

the PRC is now asserting itself more in the

region which has seen Peoples Liberation

Army Navy (PLAN) Sukhoi Su-30MKK

fighters manoeuvring extremely close

to US Navy Boeing P-8A and Lockheed

Martin P-3C Orion MPAs as witnessed

in August 2014. Even more alarming for

many nations is that the Su-30MKKs, once

equipped with air-to-air refuelling, could

reach the south of Malaysia, Singapore

and even parts of Indonesia.

The PLAN has also recently increased

its blue water capabilities to a higher level.

Its Liaoning carrier, commissioned in 2012

was declared combat ready in November

2016. Meanwhile, the PLAN acquired the
      former Russian Navy Admiral Kuznetsov
      carrier in the late 1990s and turned it into
      an arguably tangible threat to stability
      in the South China Sea. This is of real
      concern to the US Navy, as is the PLAN’s
      weaponry which includes the Hongdu
      Aviation Industry Corporation CM-302
      active radar/infrared guided anti-ship
      missile. The Liaoning can be equipped
      with 24 Shenyang J-15 fighters, a locally
      built version of the Sukhoi Su-33 fighter;
      enough to intimidate and destroy many of
      the navy vessels operated by the countries
      opposing the PRC’s maritime expansion.
      Douglas Barrie, senior fellow for military
      aerospace at the International Institute of

The MQ-4C Triton will be deployed by the US

Navy to the Asia-Pacific in 2018. Australia

has also ordered the UAV to supplement its

maritime capabilities.

Northrop Grumman

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