China fires flares at PH plane in Zamora Reef, Scarborough Shoal

[This map is not to scale and is for visual representation purposes only. Graphics by Samuel Yap / INQUIRER.net] Philippine authorities said China again fired flares at a Philippine aircraft patrolling over Zamora (Subi) Reef in the West Philippine Sea.

MANILA, Philippines — China once again fired flares at a Philippine aircraft, this time during the latter’s patrols over Zamora (Subi) Reef and Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.

Confirming reports about it since Friday, the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) said the flares were fired from Zamora Reef and targeted Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR)’s Cessna 208B Grand Caravan plane on Thursday, August 22.

“The People’s Republic of China (PRC) launched flares from their militarized reclaimed island in Zamora Reef, within the territorial sea of Pag-asa Island,” the task force said in a statement on Saturday.

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The BFAR plane “was tasked with monitoring and intercepting poachers encroaching upon the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the territorial seas of the maritime features constituting the Kalayaan Island Group,” the task force noted.

“While the BFAR was conducting the routine patrol, the PRC unjustifiably deployed flares from Zamora Reef,” it further said.

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Military base

China took possession of Zamora Reef in 1998 and is now running a fully functional military base there, the Philippine Navy said.

Zamora Reef is inside the territorial sea of Pagasa (Thitu) Island, a maritime feature beyond the country’s EEZ.

READ: PH holds joint patrols with US, Canada, Australia in WPS

Also during another patrol in Panatag Shoal last Monday (August 19), the same BFAR Cessna 208B Grand Caravan plane also encountered flares and what the NTF-WPS called “dangerous maneuvers” from a People’s Liberation Army-Air Force (PLAAF) fighter jet.

“The PLAAF Chinese Fighter Jet 63270 engaged in irresponsible and dangerous maneuvers, deploying flares multiple times at a dangerously close distance of approximately 15 meters from the BFAR Grand Caravan aircraft,” the task force said.

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“The Chinese fighter jet was not provoked, yet its actions demonstrated hazardous intent that jeopardized the safety of the personnel onboard the BFAR aircraft,” it also said.

China fired flares

This is not the first time that China fired flares at a Philippine aircraft in Panatag Shoal.

On August 8, two Chinese Air Force fighter jets shot flares into the path of the Philippine Air Force NC-212i plane and made “dangerous maneuvers” during the patrols in the shoal, the Philippine military said.

Beijing’s actions in the West Philippine Sea are based on its belief that it owns almost the entire South China Sea.

It continues to reject a July 2016 Arbitral Award that effectively dismissed its claims and favored Manila’s assertions over the disputed waters.

China’s nine-dash line – which became 10-dash line in its 2023-released standard map to incorporate Taiwan – overruns the West Philippine Sea, including the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

Manila elevated its case against China’s claims before the Netherlands-based Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2013, or a year after its tense standoff with Beijing over Panatag Shoal, a lagoon controlled by China.