U.S. Aircraft Performs ‘Evasive Maneuvers’ After Chinese Fighter Jet Flies Within 20 Feet (VIDEO)

A Chinese military plane came within 20 feet of a U.S. air force aircraft in the South China Sea last week.

The U.S. aircraft had to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace.

According to U.S. officials, the Chinese fighter pilot “performed an unsafe maneuver” while flying close to an Air Force plane.

The U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft was “lawfully conducting routine operations over the South China Sea in international airspace,” according to a statement from the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command Public Affairs.

The PLAN pilot flew an unsafe maneuver by flying in front of and within 20 feet of the nose of the RC-135, forcing the RC-135 to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision.

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Joint Force is dedicated to a free and open Indo-Pacific region and will continue to fly, sail and operate at sea and in international airspace with due regard for the safety of all vessels and aircraft under international law. We expect all countries in the Indo-Pacific region to use international airspace safely and in accordance with international law.

U.S. officials posted an unclassified clip of the ‘unsafe intercept’ of the US aircraft over the South China Sea.

WATCH:

JOUSTING JETS: The U.S. military says a Chinese navy fighter jet flew dangerously close to an Air Force reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea earlier this month, forcing the American pilot to maneuver to avoid a collision. https://t.co/ZwgiDRUctG pic.twitter.com/aLq1TEFs9i

— ABC News (@ABC) December 30, 2022

ABC News reported:

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China frequently challenges military aircraft from the U.S. and its allies, especially over the strategically vital South China Sea, which China claims in its entirety. Such behavior led to a 2001 in-air collision in which a Chinese plane was lost and pilot killed.

cont.

China deeply resents the presence of U.S. military assets in the South China Sea and regularly demands its ships and planes leave the area. The U.S. says it is fully entitled to operate in and over the South China Sea and ignores the Chinese demands.

Such dangerous incidents persist despite U.S.-China agreements on how to deal with unexpected encounters.

The U.S. and others have also accused China of harassing military aircraft and ships in the East China Sea off the Chinese coast and as far away as the Horn of Africa, where China operates a naval base.

There was no immediate response to the latest U.S. complaint from the PLA, the military wing of China’s ruling Communist Party.