[Bobby777]

A damaged U.S. Navy EP-3 sits in a corner of a Chinese airfield in June 2001.

[Ronin]

I am not surprised... but damn it all to hell anyhow.

What was that aircraft "commander" thinking?

Yes, I know it is one thing to advocate a water landing when it is not my neck in the sling, but dammit if he didn't have the balls to do what the SOP required in the situation, he shouldn't have been at the yoke.

Of course the Chinese got lots of secrets from that thing. Hell, they would have been friggin' stupid if they didn't take the opportunity that was handed to them on a silver platter.

And yes, I am fully aware that the chicoms caused this incident from the very start.

[First_Salute]

Bump.

[First_Salute]

This whole affair has been a mess, from the top down, from the start.

To hear from the "experts" about the dangers of ditching, is to purposely consider not much else as a possibility, when there was much, otherwise to consider.

This stuff is not really all that big a secret; it just happens to be the aircraft equivalent of something closer to home.

Some whizbangs in brass dismissed the seriousness of it, by "assuring" the committee that, "Well, the Red Chinese would have come up with it in a few years anyway."

Brilliant, that.

[Orion78]

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[Imal]

The U.S. military and intelligence communities have definitely not forgotten that little incident.

While no one will say it publicly, the way the chicoms handled that situation is going to cost them dearly down the road, and already has.

A lot of doors closed for China the day they took Americans hostage.

[Jumper]

Male, female crew, worried about all sorts of issues and not the security of the nation. This plane should have done anything - to include sacrific their lives if the equipment and classified material aboard could be kept from enemy hands. In this particular instance, both the humbling of the US and the loss of classified information/equipment justified the risks associated with the Chinese adventure. Of course, maybe this was necessary after the Laurl Hughes trade channels were closed down:)

[ETERNAL WARMING]

But let's just keep on doing business there. After all, profits are all that matters. ~sarcasm off~

[yonif]

I was living in China during the time of this crisis.

[JETDRVR]

Hopefully a lesson learned for future EP-3 ELINT flights......give them some form of "little friends" a flight of F- teen something or other.