Posted on 04/27/2002 11:19:07 AM PDT by Draakan
WASHINGTON – The Chinese fighter pilot who intercepted a U.S. reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea got so close during one pass that a crew member "jumped back and yelled" for fear the jet "was going to keep coming right through the window," a newly released Navy report reveals.
"The pilot was a mere three to five feet away from the EP-3," according to a four-page "Statement of Facts" report on the incident last year, prepared by the commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in Hawaii.
Judicial Watch Inc., a public-interest law firm here, uncovered the paper in a Freedom of Information Act request.
On the first pass, the Chinese F-8 pilot "saluted" the EP-3 flight crew, the report says. Before making a second pass, he "unhooked one side of his oxygen mask" and mouthed words to the flight crew while motioning with his hand in a "pushing motion."
On the third and final "run-in rendezvous maneuver," the daredevil pilot came in with too much speed and couldn't pull back in time before hitting one of the EP-3's four propellers.
"The F-8 was basically chopped in half," said the report, which was written two weeks after the April 1, 2001, collision.
Besides knocking out the EP-3's No. 1 engine, the impact sheered off the plane's nose cone, the report says. The damages forced the EP-3 to make an emergency landing on Hainan Island in communist China.
The report says the pilots slowed the plane's descent to buy time for crew to "complete the destruction sequence" – presumably regarding top-secret computer equipment and related technical manuals, although it does not say. Pilots also made a 360-degree turn to allow more time to "accomplish their required checklists," the report adds without elaborating.
After landing at Lingshui airfield in Hainan, the EP-3 was met by "two trucks loaded with 12 to 15 people per truck, and more people on foot," the report said. They surrounded the plane like a "human fence."
The report says only "several" of them were armed. Later, after the crew emerged from the plane, the Chinese posted guards at the base of the EP-3 ladder.
The 24 crew members were loaded on a bus, where they were given "water and cigarettes" after about two hours, according to the report, which quotes crew members. A van shuttled them to bathrooms.
"No Chinese personnel entered the EP-3 during the two hours the crew remained on the bus," the report said.
The paper, which had names of crew members redacted, but apparently nothing more, made no reference to any struggles on or off the plane, or mistreatment of crew members by their Chinese captors.
Contrary to Beijing's claims the American plane violated China airspace, the Navy report asserted: "The EP-3 was clearly in international air space more than 70 miles off the coast of Hainan, and (crew members) were already headed (back to the base) with the auto-pilot on."
It also said the crew was on a "routine reconnaissance flight."
If we declared every Soviet encounter during the Cold War as an 'Act of War', the Cold War would have gotten pretty hot, pretty quick.
Gary Powers ring a bell?
Don't tell me .... he wanted to give them all a Lewinsky???
News Report
"A U.S. technical team arrived on China's Hainan Island Tuesday evening to inspect a crippled U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft." -- Reuters, May 1, 2001Memo: Big Trouble
To: George W. Bush
From: National Security Advisor Condoleezza RiceSir:
Team of five experts from "Lockheed Martin" (i.e., three Lockheed Martin, two CIA), arrived Hainan Island to inspect EP-3E surveillance plane. Team managed to recover cockpit voice recorder (CVR) intact. Miracle Chinese did not find as CVR in clear sight on pilot's seat. Team played CVR. Authentic? Crew voices sound odd; possible stress related. Also mention of New York Yankees. Conclusion: authentic. Transcript follows. Safe to say we now have big problem.
Transcript of Cockpit Voice Recorder aboard EP-3E surveillance plane. Voices of pilot, Lt. Shane Osborn; co-pilot, Lt. Patrick Honeck; co-pilot, Lt. Jeffery Vignery:
OSBORN: Co-pilot Honeck, please to state where are we.
HONECK: Sir, we are fly over South China Sea.
OSBORN: Ah! So we are in violation clearly of sovereign Chinese airspace! Good for our hegemonist purposes!
VIGNERY: Go New York Yankees!
OSBORN: I will bring our illegal flight closer even much to the righteous land of People's Republic! Look you all now. I think I can see the humble domicile residence of the honorable servant of the people Jiang Zemin! We despise him for his goodness!
HONECK: Tell us, my American captain of U.S. EP-3E spy plane travelling in purposeful illegality, is it still of our secret plans to kill the noble protector of China Jiang Zemin and to show disrespect also to all righteous veterans of the People's Glorious Revolution?
OSBORN: Yes of course! We are committed to be dastardly always!
VIGNERY: Go Michael Jordan of Chicago Lakers basketball team!
HONECK: But Wang Zhi Zhi of Dallas team is much superior we concede!
VIGNERY: Yes he will break in all ways all records held by inferior American players of his sport who have not to cringe in terror ever before superior Chinese competitor of great stature Wang Zhi Zhi!
OSBORN: Holding down that chatter you members of sinister crew! See how we are foiled in our evil purposes! It arrives the magnificent and courageous Air Force of the People's Republic of China come to rain on our vile parading!
HONECK: Damn their meddling valiant ways!
VIGNERY: Now are we foiled in our plot to set up offensive-minded missile defense shield for our masters in Taiwan, which is in truth part of China as we know!
HONECK: Go military-industrial complex!
OSBORN: My news is the worse for us yet, crew of foul evildoers. This pilot of this plane pursues us with such skill and vigorousness of purpose and has no intention of performing in a hot-dogging or dangerous manner and so could not possibly make error of which we will wrongly accuse him.
VIGNERY: What shall we do?
OSBORN: I am committed to fly in calculated reckless way into his path!
HONECK: Yes! We must showing reckless disregard for all in our quest take over world domination!
VIGNERY: Go Corporation of Microsoft!
OSBORN: It is done! I have destroyed the faultless aircraft of People's Republic of China and am a hegemonist hero!
HONECK: But damn the torpedoes! See how our cowardly deed has undone us! In our behaving recklessness our plane in clear violation of sovereign Chinese territory is damaged and falling from sky!
VIGNERY: If only our low of quality aircraft were strong and true as those made by the tireless workers of People's Republic of China!
OSBORN: Stop your chatterings! Now move in quick way! Destroy all records of our crimes against citizens of Chinese nation and marvelous leader Jiang Zemin!
HONECK: Also we must have plan for lying to humane and caring interrogators of extraordinary Chinese Army whom all nations should be in fear.
CREW: Yes, we must lie like Imperialist capitalist dogs! It is our nature!
OSBORN: I concur. But let us too hide the voice recorder of the cockpit so none will ever know of our criminal actions taken by us the real crew of the American illegal spying plane of which we are truly the real crew.
HONECK: Yes, this voice recorder of the cockpit is very honest and not a forgery. I the real co-pilot who is Honeck lieutenant will do this hiding now! May the world never know who is in clearly at fault guilty United States!
(tape ends)
It leaves out that the crew did not leave the plane when asked and the Chinese became violent to a crew member which then induced the crew to leave the plane.
This was a pilot's mistake, to which the Chinese sustem cannot "own up" due to its ideology --- much like shooting down by the Soviets the Korean ariliner.
(tributes to Wang Wei - Wong Way - What you say?)
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