{"id":60946,"date":"2018-05-18T15:48:39","date_gmt":"2018-05-18T15:48:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T00:33:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T00:33:35","slug":"show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/","title":{"rendered":"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">MELBOURNE, Australia \u2013 China has landed strategic bombers on an airfield in the <a href=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com\/2018\/04\/revealed-chinas-nuclear-capable-air-launched-ballistic-missile\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">South China Sea<\/a> for the first time, in what its defense ministry says will enable its bomber crew to gain experience in operating from airfields built on islands and reefs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a media release, the Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Video released by the ministry showed the bombers from the 36<sup>th<\/sup> Bomber Division of the People\u2019s Liberation Army Air Force or PLAAF carrying out touch and go landings as well as missed approaches on the airfield. Based on the runway orientation and other infrastructure seen in the video, Defense News has verified that airfield is at Woody Island in the Paracels chain, and not the airfields China has built on the reclaimed islands in the disputed Spratly Islands further south. <\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/14\/why-is-china-expanding-its-airbase-160-miles-from-taiwan\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"196\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg_29115d.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Why is China expanding its air base 160 miles from Taiwan?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">China is adding facilities to the airbase on the East China Sea coast, potentially providing the infrastructure to permanently base combat aircraft closer to islands of which both China and Japan claim ownership.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 36<sup>th<\/sup> Bomber Division is assigned to the Northern Theater Command and is based at airfields in northern Shaanxi Province although the ministry said that the aircraft operated out of an airfield in southern China for this exercise. The division\u2019s home bases are approximately 1,200 miles from Woody Island, within the reported 2,200-mile combat radius of the H-6K.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The H-6K is an upgraded variant of the H-6, which is itself originally a Chinese-built version of the 1950s-era Soviet Tupolev Tu-16 Badger. The H-6K has been re-engined with Chinese-built versions of the Russian D-30KP low-bypass turbofans and improved avionics that include a new indigenously-developed radar and is used primarily as a cruise missile carrier in PLAAF service, utilizing the KD-20 or KD-63 cruise missiles on six wing hardpoints. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The PLAAF currently has three divisions flying the H-6K, with China\u2019s Northern, Eastern, and Southern Theater Commands each assigned a division of bombers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">China is also said to be developing a nuclear-capable air-launched ballistic missile for the H-6K, with sources close to the U.S. intelligence community saying that flight tests have been carried out for the unnamed new missile, which has been dubbed as the CH-AS-X-13 by U.S. intelligence. The missile is a two-stage, solid-fuel ballistic missile with a 1,900-mile range, according to <a href=\"\/TEMP-LINK-TEMP\/\" data-original-title=\"\" title=\"\" class=\"selected-link\" aria-describedby=\"popover168693\">a report in The Diplomat<\/a> earlier this year and will be carried by a new variant of the H-6 that is being developed for the PLAAF. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new variant, known as the H-6N, will be an improved H-6K fitted with air-to-air refuelling capability. Flight tests of the H-6N are currently said to be in progress, with unverified photos posted on the Chinese internet showing prototype aircraft in flight. Taken together, an air-refuellable bomber and a nuclear capable air-launched ballistic missile will significantly improve China\u2019s modest nuclear capability, which is built around a retaliatory doctrine backed by a longstanding pledge of no-first-use. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":58798,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":45,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[7,45,11],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3419],"class_list":["post-60946","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-air","category-asia-pacific","category-global"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"VZFZIQTQWNC2PD2KZZHENDYVKQ","arc_canonical_url":"\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield - Defense News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Defense News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-05-18T15:48:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T00:33:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mike Yeo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mike Yeo\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-05-18T15:48:39+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T00:33:35+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 497,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Air Warfare\",\n\t                \"Asia Pacific\",\n\t                \"Global\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield - Defense News\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-05-18T15:48:39+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T00:33:35+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/18\\\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Asia Pacific\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/global\\\/asia-pacific\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"asia-pacific\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Defense News\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Covering the politics, business and technology of defense | Defense News\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Defense News\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/defensenews-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/defensenews-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Defense News\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield - Defense News","description":"The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield","og_description":"The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/","og_site_name":"Defense News","article_published_time":"2018-05-18T15:48:39+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T00:33:35+00:00","author":"Mike Yeo","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Mike Yeo","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield","datePublished":"2018-05-18T15:48:39+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T00:33:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/"},"wordCount":497,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Air Warfare","Asia Pacific","Global"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/","name":"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield - Defense News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2018-05-18T15:48:39+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T00:33:35+00:00","description":"The Chinese Ministry of National Defense said several bombers of various types, including the improved Xian H-6K, carried out landing and take offs at an island airfield following simulated strikes on targets at sea.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/2018\/05\/18\/show-of-force-china-lands-bombers-on-south-china-sea-airfield\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Asia Pacific","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/asia-pacific\/","ad_zone":"asia-pacific"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Show of force? China lands bombers on South China Sea airfield"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","name":"Defense News","description":"Covering the politics, business and technology of defense | Defense News","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization","name":"Defense News","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/defensenews-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/defensenews-logo-white.png","caption":"Defense News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/plaaf_su35_h6k.jpg.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Defense News","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60946","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60946"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60946\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60964,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60946\/revisions\/60964"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60946"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=60946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}