According to the news released by the US Navy's Seventh Fleet on September 8, the aircraft carrier "Carl Vinson" has entered the South China Sea and conducted two consecutive days of carrier-based aircraft release exercises on September 5 and September 6. The "South China Sea Strategic Situational Awareness" program platform also released news on September 7 that the aircraft carrier "Carl Vinson" has entered the South China Sea through the Bashi Strait. This is the second time that the U.S. Navy has entered the South China Sea after a gap of nearly 2 months.
F/A-18e/F carrier-based aircraft are also in the South China Sea Source: U.S. military
According to photos released by the U.S. Navy, during recent training, the MH-60r Seahawk helicopter of the U.S. Navy's 78th Helicopter Sea Strike Squadron took off from the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, and the U.S. Navy also dispatched f/A-18e/f carrier-based aircraft to conduct take-off and landing training in the South China Sea.
The U.S. Pacific Fleet also repeatedly said that the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson is being deployed in the U.S. Seventh Fleet's operational area as planned to enhance interoperability with allies and partners, while supporting the creation of a "free and open" Indo-Pacific region as a ready force.
The "South China Sea Strategic Situational Awareness" Weibo number released a message on September 7 that on September 6, the US Navy's aircraft carrier "Carl Vincent" entered the South China Sea through the Bashi Strait, and the us military's air reconnaissance intensity also increased significantly. On September 7, the US Air Force sent one E-8C air-ground surveillance air-ground surveillance air-ground surveillance aircraft (AE1492), one RC-135W electronic reconnaissance aircraft (AE01cc), one MQ-4C unmanned reconnaissance aircraft (AE5C76) and two P-8A anti-submarine patrol air-ground patrol aircraft (AE67DD, AE67A2) to the South China Sea for high-intensity reconnaissance.
The reconnaissance aircraft covered all aspects of the mission. The MQ-4C and P-8A are primarily responsible for maritime patrols and anti-submarine warfare, the RC-135W listens to electronic signals from radar and communications equipment, while the E-8C monitors ground targets and secures battlefield management.
The U.S. Navy's USS Carl Vinson departed from Naval Base San Diego in early August for deployment in the Pacific For deployment in Asia. Unlike past carrier deployments, the USS Carl Vinson carried a squadron of F-35C fighters (12) and cmV-22B Osprey rotorcraft, the first U.S. aircraft carrier to carry a Gen 5 aircraft deployed in the Asia-Pacific region.
The strike group escort ships involved in the Indo-Pacific deployment include the guided-missile cruiser Champlain (CG-57), destroyers Higgins (DDG-76), O'Kane (DDG-77), Chaffy (DDG-90), Dewey (DDG-105), Stockdale (DDG-106) and Michael Murphy (DDG-112), a total of one cruiser and six destroyers. This is the strongest escort force of the US aircraft carrier strike group in the past 10 years.
Source: Strategic Situational Awareness in the South China Sea
This is also the second time that the US aircraft carrier has entered the South China Sea after nearly two months. On July 14 this year, the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) nuclear-powered aircraft carrier entered the South China Sea under the escort of other ships. This is the first time that the USS Reagan aircraft carrier strike group has entered the South China Sea during its deployment in 2021. The U.S. military declared the operation to be a daily training in the "Indo-Pacific region." However, the "Reagan" aircraft carrier did not stay in the South China Sea for long, and after 3 days went to the Arab sea to cover the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.
In addition to the aircraft carrier entering the South China Sea, the US military also dispatched destroyers to invade the adjacent waters of our islands and reefs on the 8th. Tian Junli, spokesman for the Southern Theater, said on 8 September that on 8 September, the US guided-missile destroyer "Benford" illegally intruded into the waters adjacent to Mischief Reef in China's Nansha Without the approval of the Chinese Government, and organized the sea and air forces in the southern theater of the Chinese People's Liberation Army to follow up and monitor and warn them to drive away.
With regard to the frequent entry of the US Navy into the South China Sea, facts have repeatedly proved that the United States is an out-and-out "security risk maker in the South China Sea" and the "biggest saboteur" of peace and stability in the South China Sea. China has indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea Zhudao and its adjacent waters. Theater troops have always maintained a high state of alert and resolutely safeguarded national sovereignty and peace and stability in the South China Sea.
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