Welcome to Views From Above, a newsletter bringing you satellite imagery snapshots of world events. Today, we are looking at China’s mockups of US military aircraft and air defense systems.
Deep in China’s western desert, mockups of aircraft and air defenses used by the US and its allies have appeared. They sit on an area built just last year, and include imitations of American-made F-35 stealth fighters, F-16 jets, and Patriot air defense equipment. These platforms are used by the US military, alongside a large number of allies and partners in Asia and across the globe. Another aircraft among the mockups, an E-767 airborne early warning and control plane, is operated exclusively by Japan.
Mockups like these can serve many purposes, including training ground forces, tuning satellite or missile sensors to detect equipment, and target practice. China has built them for years, including outlines of a US aircraft carrier and several destroyers at a target range elsewhere in the western Chinese desert. As The War Zone reported in 2021, China went beyond static outlines and installed a rail system to move large, ship-like targets across a test area. While China’s efforts are extensive, many militaries use mockups or similar training aids to simulate real equipment, including the US.
Whether China’s newer mockups will be used for target practice is not yet clear. An earlier imitation of the US-made, Japan-operated E-767 aircraft was destroyed in 2022, according to reporting from Nikkei. These new mockups do not appear damaged in recent satellite images, and some have moved since first being placed at the site.
Beyond their uses in training, China’s mockups send a political signal, with American and other countries’ satellites regularly watching test sites like these. They reflect the kind of militaries China’s armed forces are training to fight against, and broadcast a warning to neighbors. Many US allies and partners in the region use equipment simulated at this site, including Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan.
This site’s construction comes amid growing rivalry between the US and China, over issues that include American support for allies and partners in Asia. In the past year, US officials and lawmakers have criticized Chinese forces for aggressive actions toward the Philippine Navy, locking radar on Japanese fighter jets, and pressuring Taiwan with nearby military exercises.
More recently, Beijing’s protests over the potential sale of a US arms package to Taiwan have created tension in the lead-up to President Trump and Xi Jinping’s September 2026 summit. A portion of this weapons package reportedly consists of munitions for air defenses, like those used by the platforms mocked up in this Chinese desert test site.
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