A video shows a Chinese fighter jet intercepting US aircraft
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CNN
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The interception of a US Air Force reconnaissance jet by a Chinese fighter over the South China Sea last month should be seen as a potential warning of how easily, and quickly, things can go horribly wrong – raising the risk of military conflict deadly between the two powers, analysts say.
The incident in question happened on December 21 over the northern part of the South China Sea in what the United States says was international airspace.
Performing what the US military deemed an “unsafe maneuver,” a Chinese navy J-11 fighter jet flew within 20 feet of the nose of a US RC-135 Rivet Joint, an unarmed reconnaissance aircraft with approx. 30 people on board, forcing the US aircraft to take “precautionary maneuvers to avoid a collision,” according to a statement from the US Indo-Pacific Command published on December 28.
He released video of the incident showing the Chinese fighter flying to the left of and slightly above the US four-engine jet, similar to Boeing 707 aircraft in the 1960s and 70s, and then gradually closing in on his nose before moving away. .
The People’s Liberation Army’s Southern Theater Command, in a report on China Military Online, had a different interpretation of the encounter, saying that it was the US jet that “suddenly changed its flight attitude and forced the Chinese aircraft to the left. “
“Such a dangerous move seriously affected the flight safety of the Chinese military aircraft,” he said.
He released his own video of the incident, shot from the fighter jet, which appeared to show the RC-135 moving closer to and behind the fighter.
Aviation and military experts contacted by CNN who watched the two videos said the Chinese jet appeared to be firmly in the wrong and had no reason to get as close as it did to the American plane.
“The 135 was in international airspace and it’s a big, slow plane that can’t be moved. It is the responsibility of the smaller, fast, maneuverable aircraft to stay clear, not to cause a problem for both aircraft,” said Peter Layton, a former Royal Australian Air Force officer, now with the Griffith Asia Foundation.
“Probably the intention of the interception was to visually identify the aircraft and the fighter could have stayed several miles away and carried out that task. Getting closer brings no gains,” he said.
Robert Hopkins, a retired US Air Force officer who flew similar reconnaissance jets, also pushed back at the Chinese interpretation of events.
“The (Chinese) response is so far from reality that it is fiction. An unarmored aircraft the size of an airplane does not aggressively turn into a capable armed fighter,” Hopkins said.
But Hopkins also said the U.S. military risked blowing the incident out of proportion by saying the U.S. jet had to take “preemptive maneuvers,” a term he described as “too dramatic.”
“These are no different than a driver adjusting his position to avoid temporarily accessing a lane from an adjacent driver,” said Hopkins. “The US response is pure theater and unnecessarily creates an exaggerated sense of danger.”
But while the incident itself was safely controlled by US pilots, experts agreed that the small distance between the US and Chinese planes evident in the videos leaves little room for error. .
“Flying aircraft close together at 500 miles per hour with unfriendly intentions is generally unsafe,” said Blake Herzinger, a non-resident fellow and Indo-Pacific defense policy expert at the American Enterprise Institute.
“At that range, an unexpected movement or equipment problem can cause a terrible crash in less than a second,” Herzinger said.
And Herzinger said the current state of military relations between the United States and China meant that accidents could quickly turn into armed conflict.
“It is worth remembering that the PLA has effectively destroyed any kind of helplines or discussion forums for addressing potential incidents with the United States. If an interception goes wrong, there are fewer options than ever for senior officers to limit the possibility of escalation,” he said.
Layton pointed out another potential danger that could lead to aggravation. As seen in the US video, the Chinese plane is armed with air-to-air missiles.
“The 135 is an unarmed aircraft. Why does the PLAN consider it necessary to intercept carrier missiles when the intention was to visually identify the aircraft? Doing this could be dangerous and could lead to a major and tragic incident,” Layton said.
But at a regular press briefing on Friday, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry said the incident was the latest in a series of US provocations that threaten stability in the region.
“Let me point out that for a long time, the United States has often used aircraft and ships for close reconnaissance of China, which poses a serious danger to China’s national security,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin.
The Chinese Southern Theater Command said the US reconnaissance jet was flying “in the vicinity of China’s southern coast and the Xisha Islands” – known in the West as the Paracels – where Beijing has built military installations.
The US Indo-Pacific Command said the RC-135 was in international airspace and was “lawfully conducting routine operations.”
China claims almost all of the vast South China Sea as part of its territorial waters, including many outlying islands and inlets in the disputed body of water, many of which Beijing has militarized.
The United States does not recognize these territorial claims and routinely conducts operations there, including freedom of navigation operations through the South China Sea.
“The provocative and dangerous moves of the United States are at the root of maritime security issues. China urges the United States to stop such dangerous provocations, and stop blaming China,” the Foreign Ministry’s Wang said.
But Washington has consistently pointed the finger back at China in these interceptions, which date back decades.
In the most infamous incident in 2001, a Chinese fighter jet collided with a US reconnaissance aircraft near Hainan Island in the northern South China Sea, leading to a major crisis as the Chinese pilot was killed and the damaged US plane to land safely on Chinese territory. The US crew was released after 11 days of intense negotiations.
