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| Japanese F-15 /Eurasian Times |
International Military - Russia's invasion of Ukraine has raised concerns that China could make a similar move against Taiwan. Japan as a country that is close to a beleaguered island nation, is very worried about the potential for a Chinese attack. The severe sanctions imposed by Japan on Russia are considered an indirect message to China.
It aims to create a deterrent, so that China does not carry out a similar plan against Taiwan. Japan's anxiety is based on the belief that any war between China and Taiwan will inevitably draw Tokyo into it. In addition, tensions between Japan and China have been rising for more than a year.
Reporting from the Eurasian Times, in April and December last year, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force intercepted a number of foreign fighter jets approaching its airspace. Most were Chinese fighter jets tracked by Japan's F-15 J Eagles. Chinese aggression against Japan began to escalate shortly after the PLA Air Force began routine intrusions into Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
Tokyo is deeply concerned about Chinese activity near the southwestern region of Japan, which is close to Taiwan. China's aggression and power projection against Japan is likely to increase in the near future.
In addition, China's most advanced stealth fighter jet, the J-20 Mighty Dragon was deployed to air force units patrolling the Taiwan Strait and East China Sea last year. The move was interpreted by Chinese observers as a message to Japan and South Korea, US allies in the region.
Subsequently, the first batch of J-20 fighter jets was deployed to bases at China's East Command which oversees the Taiwan Strait and East China Sea. The Japanese Air Force deploys F-15 Eagles to intercept Chinese fighter jets in the East China Sea.
Japan is currently upgrading its existing fleet of F-15 fighter jets in response to the growing security threat from China in the region. The F-15 is a powerful twin-engine fighter jet combining speed, advanced radar, and a large fuel and armament payload to monitor the vast oceans surrounding the Japanese archipelago.
Japan will upgrade 68 of its Eagle fighter jets to the F-15 'JSI' (Japanese Super Interceptor) standard. The new variant of the fighter jet will include new electronic warfare systems, avionics and missiles. Boeing has been awarded a contract by the US Air Force to build new equipment for Japan's F-15 Eagle Super Interceptors.
The contract is worth more than USD 470 million and was made in December last year. However, it remains to be seen whether these F-15 fighter jets can survive the Chinese J-20.
Reporting from airforce-technology.com, the F-15J is a supersonic fighter jet with air superiority in all weather for multi-role missions. Japan operates the fighter jet based on the F-15 C Eagle of the US Air Force. The F-15 became one of the most successful and battle-proven modern fighter jets in America's arsenal.
On the other hand, the J-20 is a twin-engine, single-seat, front-canard stealth fighter. It is longer than the F-15 J and internal armament and fuel storage are housed in the long and wide fuselage of the fighter jet. The F-15 may have problems seeing the J-20 at longer distances due to its stealth nature.
In contrast, the F-15 may be superior at closer ranges. The reason is, the J-20 Mighty Dragon fighter jet is said to be underpowered for now. The fighter jet was originally to be powered by the WS-15 engine, but failed critical tests and China had to compete with the WS-10 engine.
The F-15 fighter jet is known to be a powerful dogfighter, and the Eagle's higher thrust and maneuverability can be used to achieve a positional advantage against China's J-20 Mighty Dragon.
Both fighter jets have their respective advantages, for that it will be difficult to speculate which one is superior to the two. One is an interceptor and dogfighter jet, while the other is a stealth fighter with long-range firing capabilities.