IS PLA FIGHTER pilot Wang Wei, downed in the mid-air collision with a United States reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea, a people's hero or was he a reckless maverick? As crucial questions remain unanswered over the fateful incident, the propaganda battle being waged behind the scenes by China and the US presents conflicting images of the 33-year-old airman. The background briefings being offered by the Pentagon to media and congressmen portray the naval squadron commander as a 'flashy' pilot who flew dangerously while intercepting US aircraft - flying so close on one occasion he was photographed holding a piece of paper showing his e-mail address. These briefings contrast with reports published in Beijing, which call Wang an 'outstanding pilot' and, in his earlier days, a responsible student. Wang's portrayal is much more than a simple propaganda device. It is being used by both powers to substantiate allegations the other side was at fault. Official Chinese media are being closely scrutinised by military experts and academics for signs of how Beijing intends to handle the crisis. So far, the central Government has kept mainland media on a tight leash, unlike the rage vented against America in 1999 following the Nato bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade. Chinese leaders, from President Jiang Zemin down, have made it clear they expect an apology over the incident. After the pilots of the American EP-3E surveillance aircraft made an emergency landing at the PLA's Lingshui airstrip on Hainan Island, which Beijing alleges was unauthorised, the 24 US military personnel on board were held at a military guesthouse. The mid-air impact sent Wang's F-8 II fighter plunging into the South China Sea. Even Mr Jiang came to the defence of Wang in the to-and-fro over who was to blame. 'It is the US plane that violated flight rules by displaying dangerous moves. [It] bumped into and destroyed our plane, and as a result, our pilot is missing,' he said last week. Little has been revealed about the pilot in the mainland's official media, which has so far concentrated on his family's ordeal. A photo did not appear in newspapers until Wednesday, three days after the collision. Only his age and position as squadron commander were reported; his exact rank and base were not revealed. Even then, a strong political spin was being placed on information about the pilot's family. His wife, Ruan Guoqin, was first reported to have expressed 'indignation' over the lack of US remorse towards the fate of her husband. 'Wang Wei, where are you? Our son and I are waiting for you,' the People's Daily quoted her as saying. On Thursday, Xinhua reported from Hainan that Wang's wife was so grief-stricken she had been sent to hospital. She and their six-year-old son were said to be desperate for his return. On Saturday, Chinese state newspapers splashed on their front pages an emotional letter from Ms Ruan to US President George W. Bush, charging him with cowardice and defaming her husband. The letter was delivered to the US Embassy in Beijing on Saturday morning. 'So far, my husband has not been rescued,' she wrote. 'But in this serious matter, with irrefutable facts and the responsibility completely resting on the US side, you are too cowardly to voice an 'apology' . . .' Wang's elderly parents, father Wang Ming, 63, and mother Wang Yueqin, 56, both retired factory workers in Huzhou, Zhejiang province, had also been hospitalised, China Daily reported on its front page on Friday. 'I do not feel like eating and cannot sleep. I miss my son,' said his father. A middle-school teacher said Wang was a 'good student who was extremely responsible and always ready to help others', said China Daily. He was admitted to flight school after graduating from Huzhou No 4 High School. Washington and Beijing are claiming not only did each other's pilots make mistakes but their general flying tactics were also to blame. The Pentagon is denying the flights of special electronically equipped aircraft, such as the EP-3E, which collided with Wang's jet during a cat-and-mouse incident near Hainan Island on April 1, were provocative spying missions and instead claims they are merely conducting surveillance of PLA activities while over international waters. Propaganda from Beijing paints a different picture. A report in the Hong Kong newspaper, Wen Wei Po, which is mainland funded, profiling fighter pilots such as Wang who conduct interceptions of US surveillance aircraft near the Chinese coast, is typical of reports that have appeared periodically in official media. The June 1999 report does not explicitly refer to reconnaissance aircraft chased by the jet fighters as American planes but instead says they come from a 'certain country'. The article drips in patriotism. 'In the face of the challenges from foreign aircraft over the [South] China Sea, a new generation of Chinese pilots tell the world of brilliant military successes: Chinese servicemen have the ability, determination and confidence to defend the motherland's sovereignty and territorial integrity.' It provides a unique view from a Chinese fighter pilot's cockpit during the tense confrontations, describing scenes similar to those played out in Hollywood's Cold War movie hit, Top Gun. Recreating a sortie against a reconnaissance plane, it identified a pilot as Zhang Junsheng, then aged 31 (the same age as Wang), who was said to be the youngest to carry out interception missions and his co-pilot, unit deputy chief Cao Jianhua. Analysts noted official mainland reports usually went to great lengths to avoid identifying individuals in the PLA. 'Cao Jianhua swiftly piloted the plane close to his target. The foreign plane first flew vertically at top speed and then snaked in an attempt to shake off the Chinese fighter, which zoomed and dived to pursue it. The foreign plane rolled down and hovered at slow speed in an attempt to make its low-altitude escape. 'With consummate flying skills and the wisdom of being bold but cautious, the Chinese aircraft flew in formation within 30 metres of the foreign plane. 'Zhang Junsheng saw that the pilot of the foreign plane signalled with his left hand in a yellow glove that they were too close to his plane.' In an apparent confirmation of US complaints that Chinese fighters were getting too close to their slower aircraft, the article revealed the PLA pilots manoeuvred their jets so that 'the wings of the two planes were about to touch' and took photographs from the cockpit. 'The foreign reconnaissance plane, specifically designed for spying, did not dare to make a rash move and [so] let the Chinese plane 'escort' it back to the open sea.' Pilot Zhang had 'successfully intercepted' foreign aircraft in more than 100 sorties and won nine merit citations. 'In the face of challenges, a new generation of Chinese pilots, who are standing in combat readiness, have the confidence and ability to win a 'future battle' on the China Sea,' said the newspaper. According to mainland military journal Jianchuan Zhishi (Naval and Merchant Ships), international airspace rules require aircraft to keep at least 300 metres between them. A pilot described to the magazine 'see-saw' duels between interceptor jets and surveillance aircraft, a situation which could easily lead to a collision. 'When you try to push him out, he will fly away a little bit. But just as you are ready to return, he comes back,' he said. Washington says the PLA fighter pilots have become increasingly aggressive in recent months and are now pointing the finger directly at Wang as one of those it had allegedly identified as a reckless flyer. Pentagon officials believe Wang was likely to have manoeuvred his aircraft underneath the EP-3E last Sunday morning just before impact. They say Chinese pilots would often fly beneath the lumbering surveillance aircraft and then shoot up in front as part of their tactics. The scenario was based on photographs of the plane that showed its nose cone missing and the pilot's damage report made by radio before armed Chinese troops boarded the plane. In briefings to US members of Congress and The New York Times, officials alleged Wang flew within three metres of an American plane during a previous encounter. They showed the politicians and reporters photographs of encounters, including one they claimed showed Wang holding the piece of white paper with his e-mail address. The officials claimed intelligence analysts could identify individual Chinese pilots by their insignia and flight tactics. The US military officials said Wang was one of only two or three pilots who had gone too far in aggressively confronting patrols, according to the Times. 'Obviously, he was just being flashy and wanted to show off his stuff,' an American official reportedly said. The confrontations are a potentially dangerous game played out by militaries around the world, according to Andrew Brookes, air-defence analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. He said surveillance aircraft were also sent by potential adversaries such as Russia to the outer limits of nations such as Britain to examine radar systems and responses, and were frequently met by fighter jets. 'These fighter pilots want to practise their skills [in case of conflict]. It is in everybody's interest, in this game, to check each other out.' He said the alleged rise in aggressiveness among Chinese interception pilots could be designed to send a message to the US. 'The Chinese have to prove to the Americans that they are not a pushover over Taiwan,' said Mr Brookes. And PLA pilots relished the chance to pit their skills against US counterparts. 'Who better than to get yourself up to speed on than the Americans?' Glenn Schloss ( schloss@scmp.com ) is a staff writer for the Post's Editorial Pages
