US spy planes make fewer flights over South China Sea as focus shifts: report

Beijing think tank says the US military last month turned its attention to the East China Sea and was also diverted by Russian drills near Hawaii

Report details an American anti-submarine patrol aircraft crossing the Taiwan Strait from north to south for the first time

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Chinese think tank SCSPI reports an increase in American flights over the East China Sea last month, including by the unmanned RQ-4 Global Hawk. Photo: US Air Force via Reuters

Published: 1:50pm, 6 Jul 2021Updated: 11:38pm, 6 Jul 2021

The United States conducted 36 reconnaissance flights over the South China Sea in June, half the number from May, a Beijing-based think tank said, saying the US had temporarily shifted focus to the East China Sea.

In a monthly summary, the South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI) said there was a “significant” increase in reconnaissance flights the US sent to the East China Sea last month, compared with its previous “sporadic” sorties.

The 22 large-scale spy planes sent to the East China Sea included an E-3B early warning aircraft, RC-135U electronic reconnaissance aircraft, MQ-4C unmanned reconnaissance aircraft and RQ-4 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, it said.

The think tank previously reported that a US RC-135U aircraft flew directly into the East China Sea area of China’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ) on June 3. The plane took off from Kadena base in Okinawa, Japan, and flew into the East China Sea before heading west towards China.

China is locked in a bitter maritime dispute with Japan over the East China Sea and is involved in confrontations with its Southeast Asian neighbours over the South China Sea.

The US military also carried out several operations around Taiwan and in the process had set two new benchmarks, the think tank said.