The PLAAF and the Integration of Air and Space Power

Kevin Pollpeter

On November 1, 2009, Chinese news outlets published an interview with People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) Commander General Xu Qiliang that was interpreted by many as an official Chinese statement endors­ing the development of space weapons and the establishment of a space force based on the PLAAF. Xu proclaimed that the 21st century was “an informatized century” and “an air and space century.” Xu went on to say:1

The air and space era and information era have arrived at the same time and the domain of information and domain of space and air have become the new commanding height for international strategic com­petition. Considering the global trend of a new revolution in military affairs, competition among armed forces is moving toward the air and space domain and is extending from the aviation domain to near space and even deep space. Such a “shift” represents an irresistible trend, such an “expansion” is historically inevitable, and such development is irre­versible. In a certain sense, having control of air and space means having control of the ground, oceans, and the electromagnetic space, which also means having the strategic initiative in one’s hands.

In ground operations, the commanding height is to be found on the hill­top; in three-dimensional operations, the commanding height is to be found in the air. Since the air force’s “sphere of activity is high up in the heavens,” it is heaven’s favored one and boasts the combination of a sci­ence gene, an expedition gene, and a military gene. The air force is a young military service branch, yet its appearance on the scene has at once twisted the curve of the evolution of two-dimensional warfare and has quickly established a status that is on a par with the land force whose history goes back several thousand years and the naval force whose history goes back several hundred years. It has evolved from a supporting subordinate force into a decisive strategic force. Since the air force is a science – and technol­ogy-based service branch, it has always occupied the commanding height of knowledge…. On the surface of the earth, the area of land is limited and so is the area of oceans and seas, only the space and the sky have no limits.

In facing the particular nature of the developing competition in the domains of air and space, the people’s air force must establish a con­cept of air and space security, of air and space interests, and of air and space development. It must establish an air force that corresponds to our country’s building and development needs, that is in keeping with the development needs of the air and space age and that will help maintain regional stability and world peace by properly forging a sharp sword and shield capable of winning peace.

In order to develop an air force that is capable of carrying out this agenda, Xu advocated that the PLAAF should focus on carrying out the “historic mis­sions of our armed forces in the new century” by extending the “boundary of security” to “wherever there are national interests” and by building a ser­vice capable of winning an informatized war, integrating air and space, acquir­ing defensive and offensive capabilities, and developing reconnaissance, early warning, air strike, antimissile air defense, and strategic airlift and airdrop capabilities.2

Even though Xu did not explicitly propose that China develop antisat­ellite (ASAT) weapons, Xu’s call for the air force to forge a “sharp sword and shield capable of winning peace” and his assessment “of the inevitability of mil­itary competition in air and space” were widely interpreted as a call for the development of space weapons and for the PLAAF to be the PLA’s space force. Even the Chinese new agency Xinhua reported that Xu had advocated devel­oping “an air force with integrated capabilities for both offensive and defensive operations in space as well as in the air”3

The Chinese Foreign Ministry, reacting to the interview, denied that China would ever participate in a space arms race. According to foreign min­istry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu, “China has all along upheld the peaceful use of outer space. We oppose the weaponization of outer space or a space arms race. China has never and will not participate in an outer space arms race in any form. The position of China on this point remains unchanged”4

Speaking 10 days after his interview, Xu clarified but did not retract his remarks. He stated that China’s policy toward outer space had always been con­sistent and that the air force would firmly carry out the policies of the coun­try. It supported using outer space for peaceful purposes and it opposed car­rying out an arms race in space and deploying weapons in outer space. China also followed the principle of peace, development, cooperation, and peaceful exploration and utilization. At the same time, Xu stated that his earlier remarks were an “objective analysis” that recognized that “some countries are develop­ing weapons for space deployment, and some phenomena of not being secure have appeared in outer space”5

Xu Qiliang’s remarks in his November 1, 2009, interview offer provoca­tive insights into the PLAAF’s attitudes toward the use of space, and Xu’s state­ments regarding space are supported by a substantial body of literature written by PLAAF researchers in the years preceding the interview. This correlation between Xu’s remarks and PLAAF research indicates that PLAAF doctrine is shaped by an interaction between PLAAF scholars and PLAAF leadership. This doctrine regards space-based assets as the primary source of information and the seizure of the initiative in outer space as a prerequisite for victory in the domains of the ground, air, and sea. The necessity to seize the initiative in outer space requires the PLAAF to achieve space supremacy—defined as the ability to use space and deny its use to others.

Moreover, the correlation of this research and Xu’s remarks indicates that the PLAAF has committed itself to become both an air and space force in which the PLAAF is the main orchestrator of space-enabled operations. Under the rubric of an “integrated air and space force,” the PLAAF describes itself as the service most responsible for the PLA’s space enterprise. In this role, the PLAAF will be the primary entity facilitating network-centric warfare and jointness in the PLA and the main defender of China’s interests in outer space. Because of this, PLAAF analysts argue that the air force is the ideal institution to lead the PLAs space efforts. Consequently, the doctrine of integrated air and space operations is not only about how the PLAAF should conduct future operations, but also about the PLAAF position within the PLA hierarchy.

The fullest analysis and comprehension of Xu Qiliang’s remarks and PLAAF writings on the role of space in the PLAAF strategy of integrated air and space operations (Й^—ФІТіК) first require examining the role of space in the strategic guidance of the “New Historic Missions.” This examination will provide context for the importance of space in future operations and the organizational changes proposed by PLAAF researchers to effectively carry out space missions.