PLA Drops to 2 Sorties on April 12 — Final Day of KMT Visit — 8 PLAN Vessels + 4 Official Ships; 1 of 2 Sorties Enters Southeastern ADIZ; Sharp De-Escalation From Apr 11 Surge

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense detected 2 PLA aircraft sorties, 8 PLAN vessels, and 4 official ships operating around Taiwan on April 12, 2026 (as of 0600 local time) — the final day of KMT Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun's six-day China visit. One of the 2 sorties entered Taiwan's southeastern ADIZ sector. Taiwan deployed CAP aircraft, naval vessels, and coastal missile systems in response. The April 12 count of 2 sorties represents a sharp de-escalation from the post-summit surge of 17 sorties on April 11, and is consistent with PLA doctrine of peaking coercive pressure on the day after the most high-profile diplomatic event (April 10 Xi-KMT summit) and then rapidly reducing air activity as the visit concludes. The 8-vessel PLAN count is steady, and the 4 official ships is the highest official ship count observed during the KMT visit period. PLA air activity pattern across the six-day visit: 1 sortie (Apr 7, Cheng arrival in Shanghai) → 2 (Apr 8, Nanjing) → 6 (Apr 9, en route Beijing) → 7 (Apr 10, Xi-KMT summit day) → 17 (Apr 11, post-summit surge, highest since Mar 29 peak) → 2 (Apr 12, visit ends). The visit-closure wind-down confirms PLA's pressure-and-dialogue dual-track strategy: military coercion is calibrated to the diplomatic calendar, peaking after key political signals, then reducing as visits conclude to preserve space for Beijing's declared 'peace' messaging.