JAPAN scrambled a record number of fighter jets in the past 12 months amid sharply escalating tensions with China, official figures have revealed.
The overall figure is a sharp rise compared to the preceding 12 months when jets were deployed 873 times.
The previous high was 944 times back in 1984.
Of the total, a record 851 jets were used to ward off Chinese planes that were close to Japanese air space, a rise of 280 compared to the previous 12 months.
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