Philippines accuses China of shooting flares at its plane

The Philippines accused China on Aug 24 of firing flares at one of its aircraft as it patrolled over the South China Sea in August.

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Beijing claims most of the strategic waterway and has been involved in tense maritime confrontations with Manila in recent months, sparking fears of armed conflict that could draw in the US, a Philippine military ally.

A Chinese fighter jet "engaged in irresponsible and dangerous manoeuvres" on Aug 19 as the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) plane made a "maritime domain awareness flight" near Scarborough Shoal, the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea said.

The unprovoked Chinese "harassment" included "deploying flares multiple times at a dangerously close distance of approximately 15m from the BFAR Grand Caravan aircraft", the task force added in a statement accompanied by video clips of the incident.

Flares were also launched near the same plane from the Chinaheld Subi Reef on Aug 22 as the patrol craft was "monitoring and intercepting poachers encroaching upon the Philippines' exclusive economic zone and the territorial seas", it added.