The nation’s defense force has vehemently condemned the provocative actions of two multi-role fighter jets of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) of China for dropping military-grade flares in the flight path of a Philippine Air Force (PAF) aircraft.
This reckless maneuver threatened the lives of PAF personnel performing a routine aerial maritime patrol on August 8 over Bajo de Masinloc, within the country’s territorial waters, according to Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner Jr. in a statement released Saturday afternoon.
Brawner said PAF aircraft, NC-212i, nearly faced disaster when two PLAAF aircraft executed reckless maneuvers around 9 a.m. and dropped flares in the path of the Philippine aircraft.
“The incident posed a threat to Philippine Air Force aircraft and its crew, interfered with lawful flight operations in airspace within Philippine sovereignty and jurisdiction, and contravened international law and regulations governing safety of aviation,” Brawner stated.
Despite the incident, Brawner said that the pilots and crew of the NC-212i safely returned to Clark Air Base around 10 a.m. None of them were hurt.
“The AFP has reported the incident to the Department of Foreign Affairs and relevant government agencies. We reaffirm our commitment to exercise our rights in accordance with international law, particularly UNCLOS and the Chicago Convention,” Brawner added. (with a report from Celeste Anna Formoso)
