Lingshui Airbase() is a

naval air station A Naval Air Station (NAS) is a military air base, and consists of a permanent land-based operations locations for the military aviation division of the relevant branch of a navy (Naval aviation). These bases are typically populated by squadron ...

located on

Lingshui Li Autonomous County Língshuǐ Li Autonomous County is an autonomous county in Hainan, China. It is one of the six Autonomous areas of China, autonomous counties of Hainan with a postal code of 572400, and in 1999 a population of 318,691, largely made up of the Li p ...

Hainan Hainan is an island provinces of China, province and the southernmost province of China. It consists of the eponymous Hainan Island and various smaller islands in the South China Sea under the province's administration. The name literally mean ...

Island,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The airbase is a highly strategic location, being part of the

Southern Theater Command The Southern Theater Command () is one of the Theater commands of the People's Liberation Army, five theater commands of the People's Liberation Army, founded on 1 February 2016. Its predecessor was the Guangzhou Military Region. Its jurisdicti ...

, and within easy flying distance of the disputed islands in the South China Sea. Hainan Island is also host to a second military air base -

Sanya Air Base Sanya Airbase is a military air base located on Hainan Island, China. The airbase is in a highly strategic location, part of the Southern Theater Command, and within easy flying distance of the disputed islands in the South China Sea. Hainan I ...

History

The airbase was the focus for the aftermath of what became known as the

Hainan Island incident The Hainan Island incident was a ten-day international incident between the United States and the People's Republic of China (PRC) that resulted from a mid-air collision between a United States Navy EP-3E ARIES II SIGINT, signals intelligence a ...

, when a US

signals intelligence Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is the act and field of intelligence-gathering by interception of ''signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly u ...

aircraft was forced to make an unauthorised landing there on April 1, 2001. Analysis of Google Earth imagery since 2004 shows Lingshui Airbase is undergoing extensive redevelopment of its aircraft parking areas.

Operations

Lingshui was one of the Chinese bases which supported the

Guizhou Soar Dragon The Guizhou WZ-7 Soaring Dragon () is a high-altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from the People's Republic of China. The aircraft features a unique joined-wing design. The primary mission is expected to be aerial reconnaissance ...

, although recent imagery has not confirmed the UAVs presence. Imagery analysis from photos taken in 2017 and 2020 shown a mix of reconnaissance aircraft at the airbase, including the

Shaanxi KJ-500 The Shaanxi KJ-500 (Chinese: 空警-500; pinyin: Kōngjǐng Wǔbǎi; literally: "Air Warning 500") is a third-generation airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft used by the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). It was bu ...

and the Shaanxi Y-8Q The base is also the ground base for

Shenyang J-15 The Shenyang J-15 (wikt:歼, Chinese: 歼-15), also known as ''Flying Shark'' (; NATO reporting name: Flanker-X2, Flanker-K) is a Chinese night fighter, all-weather, twinjet, twin-engine, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-based Fourth-generation fi ...

References

Airports in Hainan Chinese Air Force bases {{China-mil-stub People's Liberation Army Navy bases Lingshui Li Autonomous County