HONGKONG /XIANGGANG/, August 5. /TASS/. At least 49 Chinese military planes entered Taiwan’s so-called air defense identification zone during an exercise on Friday, Taiwan’s military said.

According to the news release, participating in the operation were 24 Su-30 fighters, ten J-16s, six J-11s and seven J-10s, as well as two radio-electronic reconnaissance aircraft Y-8. All of them are reported to have crossed the so-called median line in the Taiwan Strait.

The Taiwanese military responded by issuing radio warnings and alerting anti-aircraft missile systems.

Earlier, the island's Defense Ministry said that on Friday, a total of 68 aircraft and 13 ships of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) were seen in the areas of Beijing's ongoing exercises around Taiwan.

The Chinese army began large-scale live-fire exercises in six areas around Taiwan on Thursday. The drills will last till August 7. Their purpose is to practice joint operations by various arms and services and hit training targets. The news of the exercise came minutes after a plane carrying US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi landed at Taipei airport on Tuesday evening.