Chinese Fighter Jet Flies Within 3 Meters of a US Air Force Spy Aircraft - What Happened?

According to the US military, a Chinese fighter jet in the disputed South China Sea flew within three meters of a US Air Force Spy aircraft, forcing it to do evasive maneuvers to prevent a collision in international airspace.

The close call came from what the US has described as a recent pattern of more risky activity by Chinese military aircraft.

A Chinese Navy J-11 fighter jet and a US Air Force RC-135 aircraft were involved in the incident, which happened on December 21, according to a statement from the US military.

"The US 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," the US military said in a statement.

"We expect all countries in the Indo-Pacific region to use international airspace safely and in accordance with international law."

Evasive Maneuvers

A US military representative told Reuters that the US aircraft had to make evasive maneuvers since the Chinese fighter was just 20 feet from its nose but 10 feet from its wing.

Another US official said that the US has brought up the matter with the Chinese government.

Huge portions of the South China Sea that China claims coincide with the exclusive economic zones of the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia.

Every year, trillions of dollars worth of trade pass through the waterway, which is also home to abundant gas deposits and fishing grounds.

For a long time, US military officials have worked to keep lines of communication open with their Chinese counterparts to reduce the likelihood of potential blowups.

A Chinese fighter jet riskily intercepted an Australian military surveillance plane over the South China Sea in May, according to a statement from Australia's defense department in June.

Australia claims that the Chinese jet passed very closely in front of the RAAF plane and discharged a "bundle of chaff" that contained tiny fragments of aluminum that got into the plane's engine.

Canada also claimed in June that Chinese warplanes had harassed its patrol aircraft as they were keeping an eye on North Korea's attempts to evade sanctions, sometimes causing Canadian aircraft to deviate from their flight paths.