# People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force

The People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force (PLANAF; Chinese: 中国人民解放军海军航空兵; pinyin: Zhōngguó Rénmín Jiěfàngjūn Hǎijūn Hángkōngbīng) is the naval aviation branch of the People's Liberation Army Navy.

## History

Historically, the PLANAF's main role has been to provide the navy's warships with air defense coverage. Part of the coastal defense doctrine was to have naval aircraft protecting the ships, hence the reason why many PLA ships of the 1960s–70s lacked long range anti-aircraft missiles or artillery. During the Sino-Vietnamese War, the PLANAF carried out many successful bombing and airstrike missions against Vietnamese territories, such as in the Spratly Islands. The 1960s saw a series of air combat sorties flown against the Republic of China Air Force. PLANAF pilots have been credited with many major victories over the Taiwanese in these small incidents. Historical aircraft operated by the PLANAF include the J-5, the J-6, and H-5. These aircraft have been retired by the late 1990s.
A PLANAF J-15 made the first landing on Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier, on 25 November 2012.
According to the Department of the Air Force's China Aerospace Studies Institute (CASI) the PLANAF had around 2016 a major restructuring into a brigade structure.
In 2023, the PLANAF transferred maritime strike, bomber, and most fighter units to the People's Liberation Army Air Force, including at least 3 fighter brigades, 2 bomber regiments, 3 radar brigades, 3 air defense brigades, and some airbases. It retained carrier aircraft, helicopters, UAVs, and other special purpose aircraft.

## Organization

* Northern Theatre Command Naval Air Force [zh], North Sea Fleet
* Eastern Theater Command Naval Air Force [zh], East Sea Fleet
* Southern Theatre Command Naval Air Force [zh], South Sea Fleet
* PLA Naval Aviation University

## Bases

* Lingshui Naval Air Station - KJ-500, Shaanxi Y-8Q and ground base of Shenyang J-15s

## Equipment

| Aircraft | Origin | Type | Variant | In service | Notes |
| Combat aircraft ||||||
| Shenyang J-11 | China | Air superiority | J-11B/BS | 50 | |
| Shenyang J-15 | China | Multirole | | 60 | |
| AWACS ||||||
| Changhe Z-18 | China | AEW | Z-18F | 4+ | |
| Kamov Ka-31 | Russia | AEW | | 9 | |
| Shaanxi Y-8 | China | AEW | KJ-200 | 6 | |
| Shaanxi Y-8 | China | AEW | Y-8J | 4 | |
| Shaanxi KJ-500 | China | AEW | | 14+ | |
| Electronic warfare ||||||
| Shaanxi Y-8 | China | ELINT | Y-8JB | 4 | |
| Shaanxi Y-8 | China | ELINT | Y-8X | 3 | |
| Shaanxi Y-9 | China | ELINT | Y-9JZ | 6 | |
| Anti-submarine ||||||
| Shaanxi Y-9 | China | Anti-submarine warfare | KQ-200 | 20+ | |
| Transport ||||||
| Bombardier CRJ200 | Canada | VIP transport | CRJ-200 | 2 | |
| Bombardier CRJ700 | Canada | VIP transport | CRJ-700 | 2 | |
| Shaanxi Y-8 | China | Tactical transport | Y-8C | 6 | |
| Shijiazhuang Y-5 | China | Transport | | 20 | |
| Xian Y-7 | China | Tactical transport | Y-7G | 2 | |
| Xian Y-7 | China | Tactical transport | Y-7H | 6 | |
| Helicopter ||||||
| Changhe Z-8 | China | ASW | Z-8 | 9 | licensed built Aérospatiale SA 321 Super Frelon |
| Changhe Z-8 | China | Transport | Z-8J | 13 | |
| Changhe Z-8 | China | SAR | Z-8JH | 4 | |
| Changhe Z-8 | China | MEDVAC | Z-8S | 2 | |
| Changhe Z-18 | China | Transport | | 4 | |
| Changhe Z-18 | China | ASW | Z-18F | 5 | |
| Eurocopter AS565 Panther | France | Multirole | AS565N | 7 | |
| Harbin Z-9 | China | ASW | Z-9C | 14 | licensed built variant of the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin |
| Harbin Z-9 | China | Multirole | Z-9D | 11 | |
| Harbin Z-9 | China | SAR | Z-9S | 2 | |
| Kamov Ka-27 | Soviet Union | SAR | Ka-27PS | 3 | |
| Kamov Ka-28 | Soviet Union | ASW | | 14 | |
| Mil Mi-8 | Soviet Union | Transport | | 8 | |
| Harbin Z-20 | China | Utility | Z-20J | | |
| Trainer aircraft ||||||
| Hongdu JL-8 | China | Jet trainer | | 16 | |
| Guizhou JL-9 | China | Jet trainer | | 28 | |
| Guizhou JL-9 | China | Carrier trainer | JL-9G | 12 | |
| Hongdu JL-10 | China | Jet trainer | | 12 | |
| Nanchang CJ-6 | China | Basic trainer | | 38 | |
| Xian Y-7 | China | Navigator and bombardier trainer | HY-7 | 12 | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle ||||||
| BZK-007 | China | MALE UAV | | | |
| Harbin BZK-005 | China | MALE UAV | | | |
| Guizhou WZ-7 Soaring Dragon | China | HALE UAV | | | |

## Future

In July 2018, Lieutenant General Zhang Honghe of the PLAAF stated that China is developing a new carrier-based aircraft that will replace the J-15 due to four crashes and numerous technical problems. One problem with the aircraft is that it is the heaviest carrier-borne fighter in current operation with an empty weight of 17,500 kg compared to the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet's 14,600 kg (though it is less than the F-14 Tomcat's weight of 19,800 kg). Weight problems are compounded when operating off Liaoning, as its STOBAR launch and recovery method further limits payload capacity.