The best known Chinese driver of the decade:
Posted on 11/24/2002 10:04:10 AM PST by tallhappy
NOV 24, 2002
DANGEROUS CLOSE ENCOUNTER
China fighter jets fly near US spy plane
The aircraft come within 75 m of each other in airspace off China
WASHINGTON - Two Chinese jet fighters came dangerously close to an American EP-3 reconnaissance aircraft last week during a mid-air encounter reminiscent of the April 2001 aerial collision that touched off a United States-China crisis.
Two F-7 jets tracked the EP-3 as it flew in international airspace off the northern coast of China, The Washington Times quoted US intelligence officials as saying.
One official said they came within 75 m of each other.
The encounter was close, said some officials, but less threatening than Chinese aerial engagements in the past, which have come within a few metres of US reconnaissance aircraft.
On April 1 last year, a Chinese F-8 jet collided with a US EP-3 over the South China Sea, causing the Chinese jet to crash and nearly causing the deaths of 23 Americans on the EP-3.
The US plane made an emergency landing at a Chinese air base, where the US personnel were held prisoner for 11 days before being released.
Both sides accused the other of causing the aerial crash. Angered by China's handling of the incident, the US administration called a virtual halt to military exchanges.
US intelligence agencies have increased electronic intelligence gathering from China in order to pick up new information on recent Communist Party leadership changes, The Washington Times report said.
The aerial intercept also coincided with renewed Chinese fighter sorties near Taiwan.
For the first time in months, Chinese military forces began flying new SU-30 fighter bombers close to the demarcation line that runs down the centre of the Taiwan Strait.
Meanwhile, an upcoming visit by a US Navy destroyer to China is the firmest sign yet of a thaw in military contacts between Beijing and Washington.
The USS Paul F. Foster's planned arrival today will mark the first port call in China by a US navy ship since ties were frozen in April last year.
The ship and its 340 crew will be greeted at the eastern port of Qingdao with a formal welcoming ceremony. Other events have not been announced.
Next month, the US will host nearly two dozen Chinese generals, and the admiral who commands all US forces in the Pacific will visit China.
Senior-level defence talks, not held since 2000, will resume on Dec 9
From Gertz and Scarborough Inside the Ring, 11-22-02
EP-3 intercept
Two Chinese jet fighters came dangerously close to a U.S. EP-3 reconnaissance aircraft last week during an encounter reminiscent of the aerial collision that touched off a U.S.-China crisis.
Two F-7 jets tracked the EP-3 as it flew in international airspace off the northern coast of China, U.S. intelligence officials tell us.
"They came within 250 feet," said one official.
The encounter was close, said some officials, but less threatening than Chinese aerial engagements in the past, which have come within a few feet of U.S. reconnaissance aircraft.
On April 1, 2001, a Chinese F-8 jet collided with a U.S. EP-3 over the South China Sea, causing the Chinese jet to crash and nearly causing the deaths of 23 Americans on the EP-3. The U.S. plane made an emergency landing at a Chinese air base, where they were held prisoner for 11 days before being released.
U.S. intelligence agencies have increased electronic intelligence gathering from China in order to pick up new information on recent Communist Party leadership changes.
The aerial intercept also coincided with renewed Chinese fighter sorties near Taiwan. For the first time in months, Chinese military forces began flying new Su-30 fighter bombers close to the demarcation line that runs down the center of the Taiwan Strait.
At least 12 sorties were detected by U.S. intelligence. The flights were viewed by U.S. officials as provocative and coincided with the major Communist Party congress in Beijing that ended last week.
President Bush hasn't forgotten the April 2001 incident. With the whole world watching our preparations on Iraq and our wider anti-terror campaign, America can't afford to be taken to the cleaners twice by the same gang of thieves. If anything remotely like last April's accident occurs again, Dubya will order a military response -- hopefully a very severe one that will cost the Chinese billions of dollars to recover from.
But if this is so obvious to me, why can't the Red Chinese Politburo see it? Or is there something they know that we don't?
Freedom, Wealth, and Peace,
Francis W. Porretto
Visit the Palace Of Reason: http://palaceofreason.com
The best known Chinese driver of the decade:
And Toys'r'Us and Kohls and Targets and KMarts and Best Buys and Circuit Cities and Victorias Secrets and Limiteds and ....
We don't need to start a war just to wax a foolish Chicom Mig jockey . . .
Until then, they're just doing their job - legally - in front of God and everybody . . .
You don't have it straight.
Think about it a bit more.
But that was not my point. The issue is the recklessness and the "buzzing". The point you talk about can be made by shadowing at a safe distance. That gets the points across just as well.
Communist pilots are creating a dangerous situation. It has already resulted in one collision.
Their behavior goes beyond the actions you talk about. That can be done safely. They are going beyond it and partaking i dangerous and provocative movements.
Soviets used to escort US recon planes all the time, only rarely shooting one down.
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