Two Chinese aircraft conducted an unprofessional intercept of a US Navy surveillance aircraft over the South China Sea, the Pentagon said on Friday, marking the second time in about a week that the US has complained about unsafe Chinese operations in the region.
A defense official said one of the Chinese J-10 jets flew about 200m in front of the US P-3 aircraft and about 30m above it, doing slow turns.
The second Chinese fighter remained about 750m off the P-3’s right wing.
Photo: Reuters
The official was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
US Navy Commander Gary Ross said the P-3 Orion was operating in international airspace.
He said the US is reviewing the incident and would convey its concerns to Beijing.
Last week, US defense officials said two Chinese SU-30 jets conducted an unprofessional intercept of a US radiation-sniffing surveillance plane over the East China Sea.
US Pacific Air Forces spokeswoman Lieutenant Colonel Lori Hodge at the time said that the Chinese aircraft approached a WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft — a modified Boeing C-135 — conducting a routine mission in international airspace in accordance with international law.
The WC-135 crew characterized the intercept as unprofessional “due to the maneuvers by the Chinese pilot, as well as the speeds and proximity of both aircraft,” Hodge said.
China denied US accusations about last week’s intercept, saying its aircraft conducted a safe and professional operation.
Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesman Colonel Wu Qian (吳謙) said the US plane was conducting surveillance over the Yellow Sea — the northern part of the East China Sea — and that the Chinese jets moved to identify and verify the plane “in accordance with laws and regulations.”
China also protested a US Navy patrol that sent a guided missile destroyer near a group of artificial islands in the South China Sea, where Taiwan also has claims, in the first US challenge to Beijing’s claims to the waters since US President Donald Trump took office.
The Chinese ministry told reporters that it had sought an explanation with US officials over the incident, which Beijing said involved the USS Dewey and took place around Mischief Reef (Meiji Reef, 美濟礁) — part of the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島), which Taiwan also claims.
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