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Nov 10, 2023

Amid Taiwan tensions, Offutt

Offutt-based Rivet Joint gets 'thumped' by Chinese fighter over South China Sea

Offutt-based Rivet Joint gets 'thumped' by Chinese fighter over South China Sea

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command is calling out the People's Republic of China over the "thumping" of an Offutt-based RC-135V Rivet Joint flight last Friday over the South China Sea.

Indo-PACOM released a 30-second video — shot from the cockpit of the Air Force RC-135 — that shows a Chinese J-16 fighter pilot overtaking the slower reconnaissance jet from the right side and then banking sharply to fly close across its nose. Moments later, the RC-135 is buffeted by the fighter jet's wake turbulence.

The Indo-PACOM press release criticized the Chinese jet's maneuver as "unprofessional" and "unnecessarily aggressive."

"The RC-135 was conducting safe and routine operations over the South China Sea in international airspace, in accordance with international law," the press release said. "The United States will continue to fly, sail, and operate — safely and responsibly — wherever international law allows."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning blamed the U.S., saying Washington should "earnestly respect China's sovereignty and security interests and concerns, immediately correct the wrongdoing, show sincerity, and create the necessary atmosphere and conditions for dialogue and communication between the two militaries."

Diplomatic tensions have risen in recent months over U.S. military support for Taiwan and the flight of a suspected spy balloon in February over the United States, including Nebraska.

China has increasingly asserted sovereignty over the South China Sea. U.S. defense leaders have complained that China's military has become significantly more aggressive over the past five years, intercepting U.S. aircraft and ships in the region.

The Offutt-based RC-135V was flying a route over the South China Sea between Hong Kong and Taiwan on May 26 when it was intercepted by a Chinese fighter jet that flew across its nose and buffeted the U.S. reconnaissance plane. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command released video of the encountered, which it called "an unnecessarily aggressive maneuver."

"China has put their big fat foot on the South China Sea, and they’re trying to squeeze the U.S. out," said Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, an arms-control group.

That sometimes brings the Chinese into conflict with U.S. reconnaissance aircraft from the 55th Wing, which flies a fleet of 26 RC-135 jets from its headquarters at Offutt Air Force Base as well as overseas locations.

Most of those are Rivet Joints, which are equipped to intercept radio signals and staffed with interpreters who can translate in real time.

In a screenshot from a declassified video, a Chinese J-16 fighter jet is shown flying past the nose of an Offutt-based RC-135V reconnaissance plane May 26 over the South China Sea. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command described the encounter as "an unnecessarily aggressive maneuver."

At least three Rivet Joints are currently operating from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, primarily flying surveillance routes over the South China Sea and along the Demilitarized Zone that separates North Korea from South Korea, as they have for decades.

In the month prior to last Friday's intercept, the three Rivet Joints flew at least 12 missions over the South China Sea and one over the East China Sea, according to a former 55th Wing crew member who tracks and reports the unit's flights on social media using the Twitter handle @MeNMyRC1.

Such close encounters were common during the Cold War, said Robert Hopkins III, a Texas-based historian of U.S. reconnaissance flights who flew RC-135s for the 55th Wing near the end of that era. Pilots called it "thumping," and quickly learned how to handle them.

Hopkins saw the video on social media Tuesday and did not agree that it was provocative. He called the encounter "plain vanilla and boring."

He said in the hands of skilled pilots, flying close isn't necessarily dangerous or unprofessional.

"There is absolutely nothing different here than what (reconnaissance) crews have experienced for 50-plus years," Hopkins said. "The only difference is the video. Now the public can see it firsthand."

During the Cold War, the Pentagon didn't publicize such encounters. He thinks the Pentagon is making a mistake by calling attention to them now.

"They need to cut out the histrionics," he said. "They’re desensitizing the public. They’re crying wolf over and over and over."

Still, Kristensen said, these encounters can escalate into something worse, as in 2001 when a Chinese fighter jet collided with a U.S. Navy EP-3 reconnaissance plane flying off its shores. The Chinese pilot was killed, while the Navy plane — piloted by Lt. Shane Osborn, a Nebraskan — made an emergency landing in China. The crew was released two weeks later.

And in March, a Russian jet harassed and eventually hit an unmanned MQ-9 Reaper drone flying a reconnaissance mission over the Black Sea. The drone crashed.

"Sooner or later, there's going to be an incident where they hit a plane, when these kind of behaviors become routine," Kristensen said.

The public release of video of these encounters allows China to portray itself as assertively countering the U.S. in its own backyard, he said, while at the same time helping the U.S. paint a picture of Chinese aggression.

"This is what happens when you get Cold War standoffs," Kristensen said. "It does help fuel the sense of animosity and crisis."

This article includes material from the Associated Press.

A TC-135 lands at Offutt Air Force Base Friday following an 18-month runway reconstruction project.

A crowd watches one of the 55th Wing's RC-135s land at Offutt Air Force Base on Friday following an 18-month runway reconstruction. In all, eight RC-135s landed to mark the runway's reopening.

Col. Kristen Thompson speaks at a ceremony celebrating the completion of the runway reconstruction at Offutt. Thompson took over command of the Offutt-based 55th Wing in June 2021 when the project was in progress. Behind her is the air traffic tower.

A RC-135 lands at Offutt Air Force Base Friday following an 18-month runway reconstruction project.

Lt. Col. Ryan Davis brings his new son, Beckett, to see the new runway at Offutt Air Force Base on Friday.

A TC-135 is the first plane to land at Offutt Air Force Base Friday following a complete rebuild of the base's runway. The project took 18 months.

Attendees hold their phones up to get photos of the first plane to land at Offutt Air Force Base, a TC-135, Friday following an 18-month runway reconstruction project.

Rep. Don Bacon, left, and U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer were guests of honor at Friday's ceremony. Bacon is a former 55th Wing commander.

Gen. Mark Kelly, commander of Air Combat Command, speaks Friday about the new Offutt runway. The project cost more than $200 million.

Col. Kristen Thompson, commander of the 55th Wing, speaks at a ceremony celebrating the completion of the runway reconstruction at Offutt. She landed the first jet that touched down Friday.

[email protected]; twitter.com/Steve Liewer

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Steve is the military affairs reporter for The World-Herald. Follow him on Twitter @SteveLiewer. Phone: 402-444-1186.

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