US Air Bases Vulnerable to China Missile Strikes, Researchers Say

The United States needs to expand and fortify its military airfields in the Western Pacific Ocean as they face the threat of severe Chinese attacks, researchers warned in a report.

Newsweek has emailed the U.S. Air Force and the Chinese military for comment.

Why It Matters

The report, released by the Hudson Institute research foundation in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, came after the Pentagon issued its annual assessment on Chinese military power. It said that the number of Chinese medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs) has increased by about 300 in just over a year.

The Chinese MRBM force has a range of 621 miles to 1,864 miles, therefore capable of striking American military bases within the entire first island chain. This is a north-south blockade formed by Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines under a U.S. defense concept against China.

What To Know

In the Hudson Institute's report, the authors—Timothy A. Walton, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, and Thomas H. Shugart, adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security—said over the last decade, China has engaged in what the research foundation called a "nationwide, systematic campaign" to expand and harden airfields in preparation for potential conflict, in which its airfields are expected to come under heavy attack.

Both the numbers of Chinese hardened and non-hardened aircraft shelters have doubled as a result, with over 800 and more than 2,300 in service, respectively, the report concluded. Hardened aircraft shelter provides protective cover for tactical airplanes in high-threat areas.

Within 1,000 nautical miles [1,150 miles] of the Taiwan Strait, China has over 650 hardened and almost 2,000 non-hardened shelters in 134 air bases. In contrast, the U.S. military has added only two hardened and 41 non-hardened shelters in the same region, outside of South Korea.

According to the report, the combined regional U.S., allied, and partner military airfield capacity outside Taiwan is roughly one-third of China's. This ratio drops to one-quarter without airfields in South Korea and falls to 15 percent without airfields in the Philippines.

China has reserved the right to use force against Taiwan, while the U.S. is required by law to protect the island. With a distance of 370 miles, Kadena is the closest U.S. air base to Taiwan. It is located on Japan's Okinawa Island, which is part of the first island chain.

The report said Chinese doctrinal writings have called for using surprise attacks to destroy and paralyze an opponent's air force on the ground to seize air dominance, and the Chinese military has been building the appropriate capabilities to carry out such a series of attacks.

Unhardened American military airfields are highly vulnerable to small strikes, the report said. It added that China could neutralize U.S. military aircraft and fuel stores at Iwakuni, which is located on Japan's main island of Honshu, with as few as 10 missiles.

In the latest Pentagon's assessment, the Chinese Rocket Force, which operates land-based missiles, routinely "practices live-fire strikes on mock airfields, bunkers, aircraft, and ships," improving its readiness for several counter-intervention strike contingencies.

What People Are Saying

The Hudson Institute's report said: "It [China] has also fielded a potent strike complex capable of suppressing and potentially neutralizing the interdependent system of systems of fuel distribution and storage, runways and ramp space, maintenance capacity, aircraft, and other elements necessary for U.S. and allied air operations."

The U.S. Defense Department report on Chinese military power read: "The PLARF (People's Liberation Army Rocket Force)'s growing arsenals of advanced and longer-range conventional missile systems improves its readiness for long-range precision strikes on U.S. and allied forces and bases throughout much of the Indo-Pacific."

What Happens Next

China is likely to continue to expand its missile force to threaten America's military bases within the first island chain. The Hudson Institute's report recommended the U.S. should enhance the resilience of its military infrastructure, as well as improve its ability to strike Chinese forces, inducing China to spend fewer funds on its power projection capabilities.