Map Shows Triple US Spy Flights Near China

A map by Newsweek shows three United States military aircraft, deployed at a front-line base in the Western Pacific Ocean, conducting spy flights near China on Tuesday.

Newsweek has contacted the U.S. Pacific Air Forces for comment by email. The Chinese Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a Newsweek written request for comment.

Why It Matters

The U.S. military has frequently deployed its spy aircraft to collect intelligence near the Chinese coastline, prompting strong objections from Beijing, which has demanded Washington put an end to what it called dangerous close-in reconnaissance around China’s airspace and waters.

The U.S. Pacific Air Forces previously told Newsweek it flies “hundreds of sorties” per day for training and integration missions, supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific.

“We reserve the right to navigate under international norms,” the Hawaii-headquartered command said.

Most of the American spy planes operating near China are deployed on the Japanese island of Okinawa, which is part of the First Island Chain, a U.S. containment strategy aimed at restricting China’s military access to the Pacific Ocean using U.S.-aligned territories.

What To Know

According to data captured by the aircraft tracking service Flightradar24, a trio of U.S. Air Force reconnaissance aircraft, which included an RC-135S Cobra Ball, RC-135U Combat Sent, and RC-135W Rivet Joint, departed from Kadena Air Base on Okinawa.

The Cobra Ball is designed for gathering data on ballistic missiles, a U.S. Air Force fact sheet reads. The Combat Sent can locate and identify military radar signals, while the Rivet Joint detects, identifies and geolocates signals throughout the electromagnetic spectrum.

The U.S. spy planes were tracked operating over the contested South China Sea and the Luzon Strait between the northern Philippines and southern Taiwan, a Newsweek map shows. Both countries, which are U.S. allies and partners, are part of the First Island Chain.

Communist China has threatened Taiwan with the use of force, claiming the island is part of its territory, despite never having ruled it. Meanwhile, Beijing has territorial disputes with Manila, which has signed a defense treaty with Washington, over the South China Sea.

The triple American spy flights come as a U.S.-Philippine war game, code-named Balikatan 2025, is being held in the Southeast Asian country, while a Chinese naval strike group led by the aircraft carrier CNS Shandong transited the Luzon Strait twice last week.

What People Are Saying

The U.S. Air Force says: “The RC-135S, equipped with a sophisticated array of optical and electronic sensors, recording media, and communications equipment, is a national asset uniquely suited to provide America’s leaders and defense community with vital information that cannot be obtained by any other source.”

Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, previously said: “U.S. aircraft and warships frequently conduct close-in reconnaissance around China, which seriously threatens China’s national security and undermines regional peace and stability. The Chinese side has repeatedly voiced our grave concerns. The U.S. needs to put an immediate end to such provocations.”

What Happens Next

It is unclear whether the Chinese military dispatched fighter aircraft to intercept the three American spy planes. The U.S. military has previously accused a Chinese fighter jet of performing an “unnecessarily aggressive maneuver” near an American reconnaissance plane.