7 October 2024

On Sunday, the Armed Forces of the Philippines condemned the Chinese air force’s use of flares this week near a Philippine Air Force patrol plane over Bajo de Masinloc, a traditional fishing area off Zambales.

In a statement, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., AFP chief of staff, said the Philippine military “strongly condemns the dangerous and provocative actions of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) that endangered the lives of our personnel undertaking maritime security operations recently within Philippine maritime zones.”

Brawner said a PAF NC-212i propeller-driven light transport airplane was conducting a “routine maritime patrol” over Bajo de Masinloc — also called Panatag and Scarborough Shoal — on August 8 when two PLAAF aircraft “executed a dangerous maneuver at around 9:00 AM and dropped flares in the path of our NC-212i.”

Although the PAF airplane managed to return to Clark Air Base with its personnel unharmed, the AFP said “[t]he incident posed a threat to Philippine Air Force aircraft and its crew, interfered with lawful flight operations in airspace within Philippine sovereignty and jurisdiction, and contravened international law and regulations governing safety of aviation.”