Chinese fighter 'intercepts' Philippine plane over shoal

A Chinese jet fighter “intercepted” a Philippine aircraft carrying journalists during a patrol flight over the Scarborough Shoal on Wednesday, the Manila government said, days after two Chinese vessels collided in the area while allegedly trying to block a Philippine supply mission.

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A Reuters journalist aboard the Philippine Coast Guard flight watched as the Chinese fighter closed in on the small Cessna Caravan turboprop.

At one point the Chinese fighter came within about 200 feet as it manoeuvred behind, above, and alongside the plane, PCG spokesperson Jay Tarriela said.

It was the latest sign of the persistent tensions between the two nations in the disputed South China Sea atoll.

“While they were conducting the flight, they have been intercepted by a Chinese fighter jet,” Tarriela told a press conference held afterwards.

The encounter lasted 20 minutes, during which radio demands from one of two Chinese navy ships spotted below ordering the Philippine plane to “leave immediately” could be heard from the cockpit.

The same day, two US warships - littoral combat ship USS Cincinnati and the destroyer USS Higgins - were spotted about 30 nautical miles away from the shoal, Tarriela said.