# PLA modernization
Latest news and articles about PLA modernization
Total: 4 articles found
How a PLA 'Red Company' Turns Revolutionary Lore into Modern Fighting Credibility
State media has highlighted the 78th Group Army’s “Red Third Company” for combining modern mechanized tactics with a long revolutionary lineage, claiming the unit destroyed more than ten opposing vehicles in a recent exercise while sustaining no casualties. The report serves both as a tactical vignette about mobility and small-unit initiative and as political messaging that binds combat proficiency to historical memory and civic virtue.
China’s Modest 2026 Defence Bump: A Defensive Build‑Up or Regional Signal?
China’s 2026 defence budget of 19,095.61 billion yuan — a circa 7% rise — fits an 11‑year pattern of steady, single‑digit increases and sits at about 1.5% of GDP. Beijing frames the rise as defensive and remedial, but even incremental modernisation can reshape regional balances and spur reciprocal responses from neighbours and partners.
China’s Bayi Aerobatic Team Rehearses J‑10C Display at Singapore Airshow, Projecting Confidence and Outreach
China’s Bayi aerobatic team flew a six‑ship validation sortie in upgraded J‑10C jets over Singapore’s Changi Airport ahead of the Singapore Airshow, marking its first appearance in the new configuration since 2020. The rehearsal doubles as a demonstration of PLA Air Force modernisation, a piece of defence diplomacy and a platform for international signalling to regional partners and potential export markets.
China’s Southern Theatre Air Units Step Up Cross‑Day‑Night Flight Drills to Sharpen All‑Weather Combat Readiness
A PLA Southern Theatre aviation brigade has conducted intensive day‑and‑night flight drills aimed at sharpening all‑weather combat capabilities. The exercises highlight integrated training across pilots, support crews and systems, improving sustained operational readiness in a region of heightened strategic sensitivity.