Original title: Japanese media said that the patrol tasks of the Japanese Self Defense Forces have increased significantly

　　 According to the report of Japan's Sankei Shimbun on May 20, the data released by the Japanese Defense Ministry and other departments on the 19th showed that the military activities of Chinese and Russian warships have become more active, and the frequency of Chinese warships passing through Japan's surrounding straits has increased in the past three years. On the 20th of this month, it was just one month after two SH-60K patrol helicopters of Japan Maritime Self Defense Force crashed in the eastern waters of Bird Island, Izu Islands. Since the investigation did not find any abnormality in the body, many people believed that the accident was caused by human. The pressure on the Self Defense Forces caused by the increase of patrol tasks has become increasingly prominent.

According to the report, Chinese warships most often cross the sea between Okinawa and Miyako Island, which is the main route to the Pacific Ocean, and the second common route is to cross the Taiwan Strait to the Sea of Japan. China also went to the Pacific to hold takeoff and landing training for aircraft carrier based aircraft. Moreover, China and Russia will sail around the Japanese islands after holding joint shooting training, and the frequency of such activities is about once a year.

In this regard, the Maritime Self Defense Force will send patrol aircraft and destroyers carrying patrol helicopters to the scene to monitor each time.

According to the report, the sea self-defense team is facing a shortage of personnel in the long term, and the front-line employment is tense. However, senior officials in the team said that due to changes in working methods, they would not force members as before. Although the training duration of the Maritime Self Defense Force has not been announced, another official said that "we can really feel that the training duration is decreasing".

The report points out that the number of tasks is increasing, but personnel and equipment are not rapidly replenished, and the reduction of training duration may lead to the decline of training level. The Maritime Self Defense Force has resumed using the same type of aircraft as the crash for independent flight training. However, in order to maintain the training level, some officials "hope to fully recover" all projects as soon as possible, and relevant departments plan to find out the cause within three months of the accident. (Compiled by/Li Ziyue)