Philippine aircraft failed to spy on Zhubiyu Island, China fired three flare shells at once, Philippine coast guard fled and later said it was lucky!
In recent days, taking advantage of the waves caused by Takami Asanoha, a Philippine coast guard aircraft attempted to approach Zhubiyu Island for aerial reconnaissance, but was intercepted by Chinese aircraft. After ineffective warnings, it fired three flare shells to drive it away.
After the incident, although the Philippine side did not publicly admit the "spying" intention, the coast guard department later revealed that "the situation was worrying." It seems that "getting away with luck" is an understatement for the Philippines' operation this time.
Zhubiyu Island has large-scale land reclamation and infrastructure construction, including radar deployment, communication systems, and even defense facilities. The island is about 230 kilometers from Palawan Island in the Philippines and is located in the core area of this sea region, with high strategic value.
Any unauthorized close flight, especially a low-altitude slow-speed government aircraft, is easily judged as intelligence gathering.
The aircraft deployed this time is a coast guard fixed-wing aircraft with long endurance and high-resolution imaging capabilities. Its flight path showed that it had circled within 12 nautical miles of Zhubiyu Island multiple times, clearly exceeding the needs of normal routes.
This operating mode does not match regular patrol or resupply missions, but is more consistent with reconnaissance characteristics.
Evidently, China does not tolerate such behavior. If the other party does not leave after being warned, then the flare shell will be used directly.
This also proves from the side that China's perception and response capabilities in the surrounding airspace have significantly improved. Trying to take advantage of loopholes is probably impossible.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1850920353979401/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.