Japan, China trade airspace violations over Senkaku Islands

by NEN SATOMI
May 10, 2025

The Senkaku Islands (Asahi photo

Japan and China accused each other of airspace violations around the Senkaku Islands off Okinawa Prefecture in the East China Sea after a private plane piloted by a Japanese man flew over the disputed territory.

The May 3 incident prompted the first intrusion into Japanese airspace by a Chinese Coast Guard helicopter--a development viewed in Tokyo as another step by Beijing to legitimize its territorial claim over the uninhabited islands.

Chinese officials insist the helicopter took off from a Coast Guard ship patrolling waters around the Senkakus because a private Japanese plane was heading toward the islands. Allowing a Japanese plane to fly over the Senkakus would be tantamount to recognizing Japan’s territorial claim over the islands, the officials said.

The 81-year-old company executive from Kyoto city who piloted the plane explained to The Asahi Shimbun what transpired that day as well as his interaction with Japanese officials prior to the flight.

Several sources from Japan and China were also contacted to piece together what occurred over the Senkakus, known as the Diaoyu Islands in China.

In January, the man contacted a branch office of the transport ministry in Naha, capital of Okinawa Prefecture, to ascertain if he would get into trouble flying over the Senkakus. He also explained his flight plan.

That information was shared within the Japanese government as a potential risk management case.

On May 2, the day before the flight, the Japan Coast Guard contacted the Kyoto resident and asked him to cancel the flight on grounds there was no telling how China might react if a plane flew over the Senkakus.

Meantime, the Chinese government also learned about the planned flight and warned the Foreign Ministry that a new situation would develop if the flight was allowed.

A Chinese official told the Foreign Ministry official, “You have to stop the flight.”

The Chinese Embassy reiterated that point with the Foreign Ministry on May 2 when the Japan Coast Guard contacted the Kyoto man.

But on the morning of May 3, the man departed from New Ishigaki Airport in Okinawa with three passengers. The plane approached the Senkakus around noon, but Uotsurishima island was barely visible because of the cloudy weather.

The man said he saw no Chinese Coast Guard ship or the helicopter.

But he did receive several radio transmissions from a Japan Coast Guard cutter that said: “A helicopter has taken off from a Chinese Coast Guard ship. It is extremely dangerous. Leave the area immediately.”

The man turned his plane around.

Four Chinese Coast Guard ships entered waters around the Senkakus at around noon on May 3 and a helicopter took off from one of the ships. That helicopter intruded into Japanese airspace for about 15 minutes.

Chinese officials said they acted because “rightist elements” piloting a private Japanese plane invaded airspace over the Senkakus.

The pilot told the Asahi that he flew over the Senkakus in 2015, and because nothing untoward occurred, he decided to attempt another flight a decade later.

“My objective was to cheer on Japan Coast Guard officials,” the man said. “I am not a rightist.”

Chinese Coast Guard ships have increasingly encroached in waters around the Senkakus in recent years on grounds they are enforcing the law.

Although this latest incident marked the first time a Chinese Coast Guard helicopter has intruded into Japanese airspace, it set a precedent. Japanese officials fear that China will not hesitate to send helicopters if similar incidents occur in the future.

“China is seeking any sort of catalyst to push forward its argument for territorial claims over the Senkakus,” said a government source. “This latest case is another example of dancing to China’s music.”

Chisako Masuo, professor of international relations at Kyushu University who specializes in Chinese diplomacy, speculated that Beijing in future will claim it controls the airspace over the Senkakus since it told Tokyo that a Japanese plane had invaded its airspace.

In 2014, Japan and China exchanged a memorandum to avoid rash behavior over any unexpected incident involving the Senkakus. The two sides made contact in the latest case.

Although both governments protested what happened, a high-ranking Foreign Ministry official said a calm response was important because China would not take the offensive if Japan did not give it an excuse to do so.