A Chinese military fighter jet has flown dangerously close to a RAAF plane over the South China Sea and threatened the safety of the Australian aircraft’s crew.
Defense Minister Richard Marles said the Australian government had raised concerns in Beijing about the “very dangerous” air incident, which took place in international airspace on 26 May.
Marles said the Poseidon RAAF P-8A was conducting routine maritime surveillance when it was intercepted by a Chinese J-16 fighter jet in a “dangerous maneuver.”
“What happened was that the J-16 plane flew very close to the side of the P-8 maritime surveillance plane,” Marles told reporters at Geelong.
“Flying close to the side, he fired flares, the J-16 accelerated and cut the nose of the P-8, settling in front of the P-8 at a very close distance.
“At that time, he then released a package of straw containing small pieces of aluminum, some of which were ingested into the engine of the P-8 aircraft.”
Camera icon Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles said the incident was “very dangerous”. NCA NewsWire / David Crosling Credit: News Corp Australia
Marles said the RAAF crew was unharmed and had responded professionally and returned the plane to base after the incident.
He has instructed the Department of Defense and the head of the Australian Defense Force to express their concerns about the incident to the Chinese authorities, in the Labor government’s first contact with the Chinese military since coming to power.
Marles said surveillance of the South China Sea was in Australia’s national interest and “completely within our rights under international law”.
“This is a body of water, which is deeply connected to Australia because of our trade, which goes through there,” he said.
“We have made representations to the Chinese government, but we will not be deterred from participating in the activities to which we are entitled under international law in the future.”
Camera icon Anthony Albanese says the incident with the RAAF P-8 was worrisome for the government. Credit: supplied, file
Marles said China’s broader actions in the region were “incompatible with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.”
Defense said Australian aircraft had been conducting maritime surveillance activities in the region for decades in accordance with international law, “exercising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters and airspace”.
Anthony Albanese, speaking before his three-day diplomatic trip to Indonesia, said the federal government was concerned.
“We are concerned about this incident,” the prime minister told reporters in Perth on Sunday.
“It simply came to our notice then.
The incident comes after a Chinese Navy ship pointed a military-grade laser at another half-flying Australian surveillance aircraft in February.
The already strained relationship between Canberra and Beijing has worsened further this year amid concerns over China’s military expansion into the Pacific.