During Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's (
Kyuma's attention-getting remark clearly indicated Japan's confidence in its military strength.
During a conversation with Mamoru Sato, a former lieutenant general who commanded the Southwestern Composite Air Division of the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force, I asked him who would win if war were to break out between Japan and China. His answer was resolute: Japan can annihilate China's air force within one day and destroy its navy within two days.
Based on articles by Japanese military experts Inoue Kazuhiko and Matsumura Tsutoma, I would like to compare Japan's military capabilities with China's.
Japan has 203 F-15Js, a refined F-15K equipped with the most advanced air combat system in the world, and 91 refined F-4EJs and 94 F-2s.
In total, Japan has 388 fighter planes, the second largest air force in the world. Meanwhile, China has 150 Su-27, 120 Su-30 and 60 J-10 -- a total of 330 combat planes.
Like US jet fighter pilots, Japanese pilots must serve a total of 230 flying hours annually. In addition, Japanese airmen usually receive training with US colleagues who have had actual combat experience. Chinese jet fighter pilots receive less than 40 hours of training annually, a far cry from the training of Japanese and US pilots.
In terms of fighter jet engines, US-made engines last for 8,000 hours, Russian-made 1,000 hours, Chinese-made 700 hours.
An F-15J can reach a maximum speed of Mach 2.5, has a battle range of 1,780km and carries four 907kg Joint Direct Attack Munitions, while an F-16 can fly at a maximum speed of Mach 2 and has a battle range of 900km -- narrowly outperformed by Sukhoi fighters.
The F-2 was jointly developed by the US and Japan and is constructed from carbon fiber. It is lightweight and has stronger wings and is overall superior in terms of airworthiness.
In addition, the F-2 is equipped with the same all-around detector and highly sophisticated weapons control radar used in the US navy's Aegis-class destroyers.
In terms of airborne early warning and control aircraft, Japan currently has 13 E-2C aircraft and four E-767s, which is the most advanced of its kind. The US navy still uses the E-707.
The Japanese-made type-90 air-to-air guided missile is very advanced and can make a U-turn if it overshoots the enemy aircraft or submarine.
The US Air Force uses the same missile.
But what about Japan's naval capabilities?
Japan has four US-made Aegis-class destroyers, while the US has 73. Only the US and Japan have this type of vessel.
Second, the Japanese Navy has 53 warships, all of which are stealth. It also has 16 submarines, nine guided missile destroyers and 13 aircraft carrier-style transport vessels that can carry helicopters and hovercraft. This makes Japan the second largest naval power, trailing only the US.
Japan has 96 P-3C maritime patrol aircraft and 97 SH60 helicopters. In the Cold War era, these two types of aircraft recorded a lot of submarine voice prints, allowing them to deal with present-day underwater warfare.
China has 20 diesel-powered and 22 nuclear-powered submarines, while Japan has only 16 diesel-powered submarines. However, Hyodo Nisohachi, a Japanese military expert, has pointed out that Chinese submarines make a lot of noise, making it easy to detect their position. Chinese submarines can dive down to 300m and make a rapid emergency dive to 600m, while Japan's and the US' submarines reportedly can dive to 800m and in an emergency dive down to 1,100m.
Last but not least, with the strengthening of the US-Japanese military alliance, I don't believe China would dare attack Taiwan.
Huang Shou-li is a former professor at Chung Yuan Christian University.
Translated by Daniel Cheng
What began on Feb. 28 as a military campaign against Iran quickly became the largest energy-supply disruption in modern times. Unlike the oil crises of the 1970s, which stemmed from producer-led embargoes, US President Donald Trump is the first leader in modern history to trigger a cascading global energy crisis through direct military action. In the process, Trump has also laid bare Taiwan’s strategic and economic fragilities, offering Beijing a real-time tutorial in how to exploit them. Repairing the damage to Persian Gulf oil and gas infrastructure could take years, suggesting that elevated energy prices are likely to persist. But the most
In late January, Taiwan’s first indigenous submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, or Narwhal), completed its first submerged dive, reaching a depth of roughly 50m during trials in the waters off Kaohsiung. By March, it had managed a fifth dive, still well short of the deep-water and endurance tests required before the navy could accept the vessel. The original delivery deadline of November last year passed months ago. CSBC Corp, Taiwan, the lead contractor, now targets June and the Ministry of National Defense is levying daily penalties for every day the submarine remains unfinished. The Hai Kun was supposed to be
Most schoolchildren learn that the circumference of the Earth is about 40,000km. They do not learn that the global economy depends on just 160 of those kilometers. Blocking two narrow waterways — the Strait of Hormuz and the Taiwan Strait — could send the economy back in time, if not to the Stone Age that US President Donald Trump has been threatening to bomb Iran back to, then at least to the mid-20th century, before the Rolling Stones first hit the airwaves. Over the past month and a half, Iran has turned the Strait of Hormuz, which is about 39km wide at
There is a peculiar kind of political theater unfolding in East Asia — one that would be laughable if its consequences were not so dangerous. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) on April 12 returned from Beijing, where she met Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and spoke earnestly about preserving “peace” and maintaining the “status quo.” It is a position that sounds responsible, even prudent. It is also a fiction. Taiwan is, by any honest definition, an independent country. It governs itself, defends itself, elects its leaders, and functions as a free and sovereign democracy. Independence is not a
RSS