US to make greater use of drones to spy on China, experts say
- US Navy said on Friday that two MQ-4C Triton drones had been temporarily relocated from Guam to the Misawa base in northern Japan
- Use of large unmanned reconnaissance aircraft will ‘increase the risk of miscalculation or friction with Chinese forces’, academic says
The US Navy said on Friday that two MQ-4C Triton drones had been temporarily relocated from Guam to the Misawa base in northern Japan. It was the first time the high-altitude long endurance (HALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) had been deployed to Japan, it said.
“The Triton is an unarmed, unmanned aerial reconnaissance system that provides the Japan-US alliance with enhanced maritime surveillance capabilities,” it said.
On Tuesday, a Triton was recorded accompanying two P-8A anti-submarine patrol aircraft, an EP-3E electronic reconnaissance aircraft and a USAF RC-135W electronic reconnaissance aircraft on a mission over the South China Sea. It focused on the southern end of the Taiwan Strait, and flew close to the Chinese coast near the PLA naval port of Shantou.
The Tritons will join other US naval spy planes at Misawa airbase in Aomori, near the northern tip of Honshu Island, including the manned P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, “giving the navy an opportunity to test out the capability over more congested waters and other different environmental factors”, the US Navy statement said.
This move is targeted at “the increasingly active maritime activities by surrounding countries”, the Pentagon said in an apparent reference to China.
