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By Micah McCartney
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A Chinese air force pilot told state media he flew his fighter jet upside down within 50 feet of a foreign military aircraft during a near encounter last year, in a maneuver reminiscent of those in the hit movie Top Gun.
Why It Matters
The account, which aired last week on China Central Television, follows a spate of complaints by the United States and several other countries regarding unsafe and unprofessional interceptions by Chinese forces over international waters.
Read More on World
These encounters come amid tensions between the U.S. and its allies and China as the East Asian power projects its force further from its shores, and raise concerns of an accident sparking a full-fledged confrontation between the world's two most powerful militaries.
Newsweek reached out the Chinese Foreign Ministry by email with a request for comment.
What To Know
In a documentary that aired last week on China Central Television, Li Chao, a pilot with the People's Liberation Army's Western Theater Command Air Force, described how his J-16 fighter jet engaged two foreign stealth aircraft during a 2024 training mission off China’s coast.
Li claimed the aircraft were "headed straight toward" him and his wingman.
"Their intention was very clear—it was a provocation," he added, without specifying the nationality of the foreign pilots.
“My canopy was only about 10 to 15 meters away from his,” Li said. He then how he pulled his aircraft into a barrel roll, flying inverted directly above one of the foreign jets, a move that Byron Wan, an X account focused on Chinese government activities, likened to an iconic scene from the 1986 film Top Gun.
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Li claims he locked onto both of the foreign planes simultaneously, and that both withdrew from the area.
“Since that encounter, that type of foreign jet has not reappeared near China’s coastal waters," he claimed.
Chinese forces have continued to intercept Western military aircraft over international waters in the East and South China Seas.
One such incident, reported on Monday by CBS News, involved the crew of a Canadian military patrol aircraft taking part in Operation NEON, an international mission enforcing sanctions against North Korea.
The plane was intercepted by two Chinese fighter jets within the space of a few hours, including one armed with missiles that flew within 200 feet of the Canadian plane.
What's Next
Chinese aircraft are likely to continue challenging assets belonging to U.S.-aligned militaries.
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