A Chinese fighter jet dropped flares in front of an Australian Navy helicopter in international waters, in an incident Defence Minister Richard Marles has condemned as unprofessional and unacceptable.
The near-catastrophic incident occurred about 7.30pm (AEST) on Saturday during a routine operation in the Yellow Sea off South Korea.
A navy Seahawk operating off HMAS Hobart was intercepted by a Chinese J10 Air Force jet.
“The PLA Air Force plane dropped flares about 300 metres in front of the Seahawk helicopter about 60 metres above it, requiring the helicopter to take evasive action in order to not be hit by those flares,” Marles told Nine News.
Defence sources have told Nine News only the quick reflexes of the Australian pilot averted disaster – the Seahawk normally operates with a crew of four to six. No one aboard the helicopter was hurt.
Marles condemned the incident and said Beijing had been formally notified of Australia’s concerns.
HMAS Hobart was taking part in Operation Argos, a United Nations mission to prevent North Korea smuggling sanctioned goods across the sea.
“This was an incident which was both unsafe and unprofessional,” Marles told Nine News.
“Now Australians are engaging in important work enforcing UN Security Council sanctions and in doing that work, we’re operating on the high seas in accordance with international law in accordance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
“And we expect that when we have interactions with other militaries, including with the Chinese military, that those interactions are professional and safe. This incident was completely unacceptable.
“We have expressed our concerns to the Chinese government formally in relation to this incident. HMAS Hobart continues in its work in enforcing those UN Security Council sanctions.
“When you look at the speed at which fighter planes move, at which helicopters move, the reaction time here is measured in a couple of seconds. And the consequences of the flare actually making contact with the helicopter could have been deeply significant, would have put lives in danger.
“Our concern is always for the welfare of the men and women who wear our nation’s uniform … serving as Defence Force personnel, and the interactions that were occurring by the PLA Air Force were unacceptable.”
Two navy divers were injured last November after they were subjected to sonar pulses from a Chinese warship during an operation in international waters on HMAS Toowoomba.
An Australian Seahawk helicopter.
The sonar incident occurred just days after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited Beijing in an effort to stabilise the relationship with Australia’s biggest trading partner.
Albanese has resisted calls to reveal whether he raised the matter with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC summit, but condemned Beijing for the “dangerous”, “unsafe” and “unprofessional” conduct.
The incident will test Australia’s relationship with China just as the two nations mend trading links. Chinese Premier Li Qiang is expected to visit Australia in June.
However, the Albanese government directly identified China’s unprecedented military build-up as the biggest threat of conflict in the Indo-Pacific at the Defence strategy launch on April 17.
“The risk of a crisis or conflict in the Taiwan Strait is increasing, as well as at other flashpoints, including disputes in the South and East China Seas and on the border with India,” the strategy says.
It accuses China of employing “coercive tactics in pushing its strategic objectives, including forceful handling of territorial disputes and unsafe intercepts of vessels and aircraft operating in international waters and airspace in accordance with international law”.
Also in November last year, in an incident reminiscent of the Australian helicopter near miss, Chinese jets fired flares at a Canadian helicopter over international waters in the South China Sea. Canada’s defence minister said at the time the incident was “unnecessary” and “unsafe”.
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