AFP |
Australian navy pilots were hit by lasers during flights in the hotly contested South China Sea, the national broadcaster reported Wednesday, with informal Chinese militia vessels believed to be behind the attacks.
Australian pilots hit with lasers during Indo-Pacific exercise | @graham_euan | https://t.co/fcGP9Yyn4x pic.twitter.com/QJh7J0qKkr
— ASPI (@ASPI_org) May 28, 2019
Beijing has become more assertive in the area, stoking tensions with rival claimants in Southeast Asia as well as Canberra and Washington – traditionally the dominant naval and air power in the Asia-Pacific region.
Defense sources told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that helicopters were targeted during night flights, forcing the pilots to temporarily return to their ship for medical check-ups.
Read more: Leave South China sea: Chinese warship warns US destroyer
The broadcaster did not detail why the pilots sought check-ups and how exactly the helicopters were targeted.
The laser attacks were believed to have come from fishing boats, but ABC said it was not yet formally confirmed if they were Chinese-flagged vessels.
'Our transit through the most hotly contested waters of the Indo-Pacific brought home the contrast between a naval task group operating under peacetime conditions and the challenging scenario of sailing a naval task force into harm’s way' says @graham_euan https://t.co/fcGP9Yyn4x
— ASPI (@ASPI_org) May 28, 2019
Analysts have said China operates a maritime militia that includes fishing trawlers to carry out missions in the South China Sea.
Australian warships have been on a months-long engagement mission in Asia that concluded this week. There was no immediate comment from the defense department.
China claims sovereignty over virtually all the resource-rich South China Sea, despite rival claims from its Southeast Asian neighbors.
The Australian navy has conducted joint exercises in the South China Sea with other nations, including the United States.
Read more: China’s vast fleet is tipping the balance in the Pacific
Beijing last year rejected US allegations that Chinese nationals shone military-grade lasers at American pilots in Djibouti, where China operates a naval base. Two US pilots suffered minor eye injuries from those lasers, according to the Pentagon.
AFP with additional input by GVS news desk