The Junta is conducting daily reconnaissance flights in Mon State townships where armed resistance forces are active, locals said.
Over the past few days, helicopters from the Southeastern Regional Military Command Headquarters in Mawlamyine Township have been conducting nightly reconnaissance flights over Thaton, Bilin, Mudon, Thanbyuzayat, and Ye townships.
“recently every night, the sound of helicopters fills the air. They cannot be seen in the pitch-black darkness. Between 11:00 pm and midnight, we can hear the noises from the rotors of the helicopters. The noise seems near and loud, so I think they are flying low”, a Ye resident said.
Almost every night in Mudon Township, Junta aircraft conduct reconnaissance flights
over villages and nearby rubber plantations, areas often frequented by armed resistance forces.
In Mudon Township, Junta troops have been patrolling day and night in several villages, where the New Mon State Party - Anti Dictatorship (NMSP-AD) primarily operates, including Yaungdaung, Kunhlar, and Hneepadaw, locals said.
Nai Naga, spokesperson for the Mon State Revolutionary Force (MSRF) based in Ye Township, suggested that the Junta's increased night-time surveillance resistance forces' encampments probably indicates preparations for launching operations against them.
“We need to think about whether the enemy is preparing for night operations, like soldiers descending from helicopters to raid resistance camps. It is likely that Junta troops are conducting nighttime reconnaissance flights to practice locating concealed resistance forces”, he said.
Nai Naga also brought up another possibility, the Junta could be conducting nighttime logistics missions by air to evade potential ambushes by the resistance forces while transporting supplies to its troops on the frontlines via land routes.
During the second week of April, Vice Senior General Soe Win, the deputy chief of the coup regime, was targeted by drones operated by resistance forces when he was at the Southeastern Regional Military Command Headquarters to oversee operations in Mon and Karen states.
After that, intense clashes erupted between Junta troops and local resistance forces in Mon State's Kyaikmaraw Township and along the Gyaing River. Resistance forces managed to seize several Junta outposts in Ye and Thanbyuzayat townships.
As the armed resistance movement in Mon State has intensified, the Junta has increased the frequency of night reconnaissance flights.
