US spy planes made record number of sorties near China last month, Beijing think tank says

American aircraft carried out 94 reconnaissance flights over the South China Sea near the Chinese coast in November, according to the SCSPI
It said a P-8A anti-submarine patrol aircraft flew over the Taiwan Strait on Monday and was 29km (18 miles) from the mainland’s territorial waters

US-China relations

Kristin Huang

Published: 10:00pm, 2 Dec 2021

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The US military carried out a record number of close-up reconnaissance flights over the South China Sea near the Chinese coast last month, according to data compiled by a Beijing-based think tank.

American spy planes made 94 of these sorties in November, the South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI) said in a post on its official Weibo account on Wednesday.

That represents an increase of nearly 30 per cent from the previous high of 75 US reconnaissance flights logged by the think tank in February. It began reporting the data in June 2019.

The SCSPI said most of the November activities – nearly 80 per cent – involved the P-8A anti-submarine patrol aircraft. Other planes used for the missions were the MQ-4C unmanned reconnaissance aircraft and the E-8C air-to-ground surveillance aircraft.

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It also said the US had carried out its highest number of reconnaissance flights near China in a single day last month. The US sent 10 spy planes over the South China Sea on November 4, while the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group sailed through the region.

American spy planes also expanded their reconnaissance range last month, according to the think tank, citing a flight over the Taiwan Strait by a US Navy P-8A anti-submarine patrol aircraft on November 29.

“During the operation, it was only about 15.91 nautical miles [29.46km] from the baseline of the Chinese mainland’s territorial waters,” the SCSPI said.

It noted that the number of US reconnaissance missions last month could be higher since some of the aircraft may have had their identification signals turned off.

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The increase in US spy plane activities comes as China’s People’s Liberation Army has been ramping up a campaign of military intimidation against Taiwan, sending large numbers of warplanes into the island’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ) for more than a year.

Beijing claims Taiwan as its own territory and has not ruled out the use of force to bring the self-governed island under its control.

These repeated missions – which have taken place on an almost daily basis – have again been highlighted in Chinese state media, with nationalist tabloid Global Times reporting on Wednesday that the PLA had sent warplanes near Taiwan every day in November for drills and patrols. It said this was an indication of the PLA’s strong combat readiness.

According to Taiwan’s defence ministry, PLA warplanes made 159 sorties into the island’s ADIZ in November, after a record high of 196 in October.

The ADIZ is not territorial air space, but a self-declared area that is monitored for security purposes.

Two separate visits by US lawmakers to Taipei in recent weeks have added to soaring tensions across the Taiwan Strait, which has become one of the most dangerous flashpoints between China and the US.

Last week, the US Navy sent the guided-missile destroyer USS Milius on a “routine Taiwan Strait transit”, prompting a protest from Beijing.