July 16, 2026

Official Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) media consecutively released photos showing that the Y-9 anti-submarine patrol aircraft - following its debut during the 2025 V-Day military parade - has now appeared in military exercises for the first time, with an upgraded variant also making its first official public appearance. A military affairs expert said that this indicates that the new anti-submarine aircraft has been put into operational training and achieved initial combat capability, with upgraded radar and magnetic anomaly detector (MAD) enhancing its search, attack and survivability.

China Military Online released pictures on Tuesday evening of a Y-9 anti-submarine patrol aircraft - the version that debuted in the V-Day parade on September 3, 2025 - attached to a naval aviation regiment soaring in the sky during a flight training exercise.

Another set of photos released by the official WeChat account of the South Sea Fleet on Wednesday showed an upgraded version of the Y-9 compared to the 2025 V-Day military parade debut model. 

Read more:

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202607/1366128.shtml