Author: Ethan Connell
Seven PLAN vessels transited Japan’s southwestern waters on Oct. 16–18, per Japan’s Joint Staff.
Type 052DL destroyer Tangshan (122), Type 054A frigate Daqing (576) and Type 903A replenishment ship Taihu (889) sailed northeast about 220 km south of Miyako, then through the Okinawa–Miyako gap into the East China Sea.
Type 052D destroyer Qiqihar (121) and Type 901 combat support ship Hulunhu (901) went through Osumi Strait into the Pacific, as did Type 815A intelligence ship Yuhengxing (798).
A second intelligence ship, Kaiyangxing (796), headed south through the Okinawa–Miyako gap into the Pacific.
Below is TSM’s visualization of the PLAN’s activity around Japan: