On the morning of 1 April 2001, an EP-3E reconnaissance plane of the US military intruded into the mainland's airspace over the South China Sea and conducted low-altitude reconnaissance over the waters southeast of Hainan Island. The Chinese Navy immediately sent two J-8 fighters to track and monitor it.
At 9:07 a.m., when the Chinese plane was flying normally 104 kilometers southeast of Hainan Island and the US plane was flying in the same direction and parallel to the right 400 meters to the right of the Chinese plane, the US plane suddenly turned around, and its nose and left wing collided with a Chinese J-8 fighter, causing the vertical tail of the J-8 fighter piloted by Chinese pilot Wang Wei to be seriously damaged and fall to the sea, and Wang Wei was forced to choose to parachute.
At the last moment when the driver's seat popped up, Wang Wei sent the last message of his life to the ground tower. "81192 received, I can't return, you keep going, repeat, you keep going. Then, Wang Wei disappeared into the vast blue waves.
After the plane collision incident, the Chinese military and civilians immediately launched a large-scale search and rescue operation in the sea area where the incident occurred. Unfortunately, although a large number of planes and ships were dispatched to carry out a two-week search and rescue operation, Wang Wei's whereabouts have not been found. On April 14, Wang Wei was approved as a revolutionary martyr by the Navy Party Committee. Two days later, Jiang Zemin, chairman of the 1st Central Military Commission, signed an order conferring on Wang Wei the title of "Guardian of the Sea and Air."
After the collision incident, the US plane involved in the accident entered China's airspace without the permission of the Chinese side and landed at the Lingshui military airport on China's Hainan Island.
Zhao Yu, the pilot of another J-8 fighter plane that was on a mission with Wang Wei that day, witnessed the entire process of the Sino-US plane collision incident.
Recalling the scene that day, Zhao Yu said: "On that day, Wang Wei and I were ordered to take off at 8:45 and go to the airspace southeast of Hainan Island to carry out tracking and monitoring missions. About 7 minutes after takeoff, we spotted an American plane 20 degrees ahead of the left, 50 kilometers away. At 9:07 a.m., the US plane suddenly made a big move and turned in the direction of our plane and crashed into the plane piloted by Wang Wei. I saw the nose and left wing of the US plane crash into Wang Wei's plane, and at the same time, the outer propeller of the left wing of the US plane smashed the vertical tail of the plane piloted by Wang Wei into pieces. I reminded Wang Wei: 'Your vertical tail has been knocked off, pay attention to keep the state, keep the state'. Wang Wei replied, 'Understood'. About 30 seconds later, I noticed that Wang Wei's plane rolled down to the right and fell down, and the plane lost control. Wang Wei asked to skydive, and I replied, 'Yes'. After that, I lost contact with Wang Wei. ”
After Wang Wei parachuted and fell into the water, the navy and relevant departments immediately went all out to organize a search and rescue operation. Unfortunately, Wang Wei's whereabouts were never found.
One
On the day of the plane collision incident, Assistant Foreign Minister Zhou Wenzhong urgently summoned US Ambassador to China Prueher to lodge solemn representations and strong protests with the US side on behalf of the Chinese Government, stressing that the responsibility for the incident lies entirely with the US side and that the US side must explain to the Chinese people.
What I did not expect was that the US side was very arrogant in its arrogance with regard to the "plane collision incident" and did not want to take responsibility at all. Prueher said that the United States does not agree with China's statement that it is responsible for the "plane collision incident," and that the US side expresses "regret" over the Chinese plane that crashed and the missing pilot, and is willing to assist the Chinese side in searching for and rescuing the missing pilot, but at the same time demanded that the Chinese side "release the crew of the US military plane and return the US reconnaissance plane" as soon as possible, and even proposed that Chinese personnel not be allowed to board the US plane for inspection.
Zhou Wenzhong immediately dismissed the US side's sophistry and rejected the US side's demand, and stressed that the Chinese side reserves the right to make further representations to the US side regarding the losses caused to the Chinese side by the US side and the fact that the US plane entered China's airspace and landed at a Chinese airport without permission.
At 3 p.m. on 1 April 2001, the US Pacific Headquarters issued a brief statement on its website, demanding that the Chinese Government maintain the integrity of the US military aircraft and ensure the safety of the crew in accordance with international practice, and provide convenient conditions for the immediate return of the aircraft and crew to the United States. He did not say a word about the fact that the Chinese plane crashed and disappeared after being hit.
This is because this EP-3 reconnaissance plane was the most advanced electronic reconnaissance plane in the world at that time, equipped with the world's most advanced automatic voice identification system at that time, and was the "trump card" reconnaissance tool of the US Navy. When such a plane fell into the hands of the Chinese, the US side was naturally anxious.
In view of the unreasonable attitude of the US side, Zhou Wenzhong solemnly warned Prueher: The behavior of the US reconnaissance plane violated international law and the relevant provisions of Chinese law. It constitutes a violation of China's sovereignty and territorial airspace. In accordance with both international law and China's domestic law, China has the right to investigate aircraft that intrude into China's airspace and land at Chinese airports without permission. We hope that the US side will explain to the Chinese Government and people the US plane's collision with and destruction of the Chinese plane and its violation of China's sovereignty and territorial airspace, face up to the facts, assume its responsibilities and apologize to the Chinese side.
Incredibly, despite its unreasonableness, the US side has taken a tough stance. US President George W. Bush has made a series of speeches, stressing that although the area where the plane collided belongs to China's exclusive economic zone in accordance with the "United Nations Convention on the Sea," the US flight in this area is legal. Because of its proximity to the exclusive economic zone of the Paracel Islands, which China claims under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the convention grants freedom of navigation to all countries' aircraft and vessels, including military aircraft and vessels, in the exclusive economic zones of other countries.
Based on the above-mentioned reasons, the United States hopes that the Chinese side will allow its crew to return to the United States as soon as possible and that the reconnaissance plane will be returned to the United States in its entirety without "sabotage or manipulation." At the same time, Bush also threatened that this incident could undermine the hope of establishing fruitful relations between the two countries.
At the same time as Bush's speech, the US Navy sent three destroyers to cruise in the waters of the South China Sea in the name of "monitoring the development of the situation" and stopped near Hainan Island.
Two
The attitude and practice of the US side have aroused strong indignation among the Chinese people. President Jiang Zemin solemnly pointed out on 3 April 2001 that the responsibility for the plane collision lies entirely with the US side, and the US side should apologize to the Chinese people and immediately stop all reconnaissance flights in China's coastal airspace.
In his speech, President Jiang also demanded that the departments concerned should go all out to search for and rescue the missing pilot Wang Wei at all costs and by all means. At the same time, he stressed that the US side should do something that is conducive to the development of Sino-US relations, instead of making remarks that reverse right and wrong and are not conducive to Sino-US relations.
After President Jiang's speech, Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan personally met with Prueher and explained to him the Chinese Government's position:
First, the actions of the US aircraft violated the relevant provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and undermined the relevant consensus reached between China and the United States in May 2000 on avoiding dangerous military operations at sea.
Second, since the incident, the Chinese side has been handling the incident in a calm, restrained and responsible manner, and has properly accommodated the US crew members. However, the US side does not respect the facts, but instead uses strong arguments. Confusing right and wrong and repeatedly making unreasonable accusations against China is unacceptable to China.
Third, China's sovereignty and national dignity brook no violation. If China wants to release them, the US must first apologize. If the US side admits its mistake and apologizes to the Chinese side, the Chinese side can consider arranging for the US crew to leave China as soon as possible. If the US side insists on escalating the situation, China will accompany it to the end.
Fourth, the US side should immediately stop its reconnaissance activities along China's coast and take effective measures to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.
However, Prueher quibbled that the accident occurred in international airspace, and it is difficult for the US side to agree with China's statement on the cause of the collision, nor can it take responsibility and apologize to China, and demand that China release the detained US crew members as soon as possible and hand over the US plane to the US side as soon as possible.
Tang Jiaxuan refuted: A large amount of indisputable evidence shows that the US side bears full responsibility for this incident. This incident is a serious political and diplomatic issue between China and the United States, and the crew of the US plane involved in the accident are military personnel who illegally entered China, and China has every right to investigate them in accordance with international law and Chinese law. Facts have proved that the more the US side exerts pressure, the more it will arouse the indignation of the Chinese people.
After the plane collision incident, the international community also supported the mainland's position one after another. The "European Times" condemned the hegemonic act of the US Government in handling the "plane collision incident," and the US "International Herald Tribune" also pointed out that the US aerial reconnaissance activities against China were an insult to China. The Australian believes that the United States should apologize to China for its military reconnaissance plane's collision with and destruction of a Chinese military plane, because the US reconnaissance plane is engaged in espionage activities.
Three
Due to the Chinese government's firm stance and unyielding attitude, the US attitude has finally changed.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell told the media that he expressed "regret" over the disappearance of the Chinese pilot and said that the United States is willing to work with the Chinese side to promote relations between the two countries. ”
Although there has been a change in attitude, we have waged an arduous struggle with the US side in order to make the United States assume its responsibilities and apologize. Zhou Wenzhong alone held 11 rounds of arduous talks with Prueher, and Chinese Ambassador to the United States Yang Jiechi met frequently with US government officials to present facts and reason, hoping that they would exert influence and push the Bush administration to apologize to the Chinese side at an early date.
On the evening of April 5, 2001, the United States finally handed over a letter of apology to the Chinese side. However, in the apology letter, the US side only lightly expressed its "concern" about the disappearance of the Chinese pilot, and its attitude was extremely perfunctory and insincere, which the Chinese side refused to accept.
In the following days, the US side revised the apology letter five times in succession, but there was still a big gap between it and our demands. At the insistence of the Chinese government, the US side had to make the sixth revision.
In the sixth revised apology letter, the US side made an emphasis on apologizing to the Chinese side, adding the contents of "the US military plane entered China's airspace without permission" and removing the content that "the Chinese side should allow the US side to transport the US plane out of China no later than 7 May," and at the same time expressing gratitude to the Chinese side for properly accommodating the US crew. On April 11, 2001, the letter of apology was formally submitted to the Chinese side by US Ambassador to China Joseph Prueher on behalf of the US Government, and Tang Jiaxuan accepted the US apology on behalf of the Chinese Government.
On 12 April 2001, the Chinese side handed over to the United States 24 personnel on board the US EP-3 reconnaissance plane at Haikou Meilan Airport, allowing them to leave Haikou and return to China on a commercial charter plane leased by the United States Government.
Immediately after that, the two countries held repeated talks on how to deal with the issue of US military aircraft.
When the United States saw that the Chinese side had released its crew, it thought that China was afraid, so as soon as it came up, it assumed a commanding posture, claiming that the Chinese side was responsible for the "plane collision incident," and demanded that the Chinese side allow the US side to send personnel to inspect and repair the US plane, and unconditionally return the plane to the United States, and that it had to refill the US plane with fuel.
With regard to such unreasonable demands of the Americans, we naturally rejected them on the basis of reason, and told the US side that if we want to solve the problem, we must adopt a pragmatic and constructive attitude and respond positively to China's demands.
After the Americans' arrogance was defeated, they made a strange request to send technicians to Lingshui Airport to repair the plane and fly the whole plane away from Hainan, but we categorically rejected it.
Seeing that China is unwilling to back down, the United States has adopted the trick of "the wicked sue first", saying in the media that "repairing the flight away" is the most convenient way to solve the problem, claiming that China is unreasonably entangled, and threatening China with the influence of US-China relations.
The Chinese side's attitude is very resolute: It is impossible for the US military reconnaissance plane to fly back after it has been repaired! Because this is not only a technical issue, but also a political issue. The US planes swaggeringly violated China's airspace and finally flew away from China as if nothing had happened, which is impossible for the Chinese people to accept! The Americans had better throw away their illusions and adopt a pragmatic and cooperative attitude so that the issue can be properly resolved as soon as possible.
In the end, the Americans thought twice and had no choice but to put forward a plan for dismantling the plane and then transporting it away, that is, leasing an An-124 long-range heavy civil transport plane from Russian Airlines to transport the disassembled American plane.
The Americans also know that the EP-3 reconnaissance plane is a large plane with a length of more than 35 meters, a height of 10 meters, and a wingspan of more than 30 meters. This plan was quickly agreed to by the Chinese government.
On 15 June 2001, 12 technicians dispatched by the United States to dismantle the aircraft arrived at Lingshui Airport on a special American plane with forklifts, cranes, toolboxes, and wood for packaging.
On June 18, the dismantling work began, and it was not completed until noon on June 29. After that, the An-124 transport aircraft will transport the disassembled aircraft parts back to the United States in ten sorties.
Four
On the surface, the plane collision incident in the South China Sea seems to be a purely accidental incident, but when we dig deeper, there are inevitable factors behind it that cannot be ignored.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the United States became the world's only superpower. However, after entering the 90s of the 20th century, China seized the opportunity and rose rapidly, and was regarded by the United States as the main rival that could prevent the United States from dominating the world. The US Government regards China as a "competitive adversary" and a "potential enemy" and an "important threat" to the United States, and it must contain it and set up a military encirclement in Asia to contain China in order to protect the "most important national interests" of the United States.
For this purpose, the United States regards the Taiwan issue as the only trump card left to contain China's development. However, the United States should also consider: If a war breaks out in the Taiwan Strait in the future, will the United States intervene? To what extent? Can the United States fight a war with China in an all-round way? This requires a thorough understanding of China's military strength, military strategy, and operational tactics. Therefore, it is inevitable that the United States will send EP-3 electronic reconnaissance planes to step up reconnaissance of China's military intelligence.
What is infuriating is that more than a month after the plane collision incident in the South China Sea, the United States has resumed aerial reconnaissance of China, and the frequency has become higher and higher in recent years. According to statistics, in the first half of 2020 alone, the United States dispatched nearly 3,000 military aircraft and more than 60 warships to continuously flex its force in the South China Sea and collect all kinds of intelligence to strengthen its military deployment.
Of course, we will not be indifferent to this kind of close reconnaissance by the US military, and we will generally send military planes to intercept, monitor, or drive them away. However, the higher the frequency of US aerial reconnaissance of China, means that the number of "meetings" between military planes of the two sides has also increased, which has brought a certain risk to interception and dispersion.
In May 2016, the Pentagon said that a U.S. EP-3 reconnaissance plane was intercepted by two Chinese J-11 fighters in an "unsafe" manner while flying in international airspace over the South China Sea, with the two sides separated by only 50 feet. China's Ministry of National Defense responded that the frequent approach of US warships and planes for reconnaissance activities is the root cause of Sino-US naval and air military security problems, and we hope that the US side will stop relevant reconnaissance activities to avoid the recurrence of such incidents.
Our attitude toward high-frequency proximity reconnaissance by US military planes in coastal areas is clear. Such acts ignore the lives and safety of the frontline officers and soldiers on both sides, the fundamental interests of the peoples of the two countries, and the aspirations of the people of the world for peace. China's armed forces will firmly safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, as well as world and regional peace and stability.
We are confident that our naval aviation today is no longer what it used to be.
Wang Wei, the hero who died in the South China Sea plane collision, once hand-painted an oil painting called "Long-cherished Wish," in which a pilot pilots a carrier-based plane taking off from an aircraft carrier. Now, Wang Wei's long-cherished wish has become a reality.
Today's naval aviation not only possesses fixed-wing carrier-based aircraft and shore-based third-generation fighters, but also advanced special aircraft such as early warning aircraft, antisubmarine patrol aircraft, and air tankers, and already has modern combat capabilities such as long-range patrol, anti-ship, air supremacy, electronic warfare, and aerial refueling.
"81192", rest assured, today our naval aviation has carried on your legacy. You won't be able to return, but we'll keep going!
Resources:
The Paper: "20 Years After the South China Sea Plane Collision Incident, US Reconnaissance of China Has Increased, Experts: Increasing the Risk of Miscalculation"
Tang Jiaxuan: "Reminiscences of the 2001 Sino-US Plane Collision Incident in the South China Sea"