The Chinese military jet pilot who nearly collided with a U.S. reconnaissance aircraft last month was solely responsible for the dangerous encounter, a spokesman for the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said Tuesday
“The J-11 fighter pilot performed an unsafe maneuver during the intercept of our U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft, which was lawfully conducting routine operations over the South China Sea in international airspace,” said Navy Capt. Kyle Raines. “It was the actions of the [People’s Liberation Army Navy] pilot that forced the RC-135 to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision.”
On Sunday, a Chinese military spokesman denied an earlier Indo-Pacific Command statement on the Dec.