U.S. deploys Cobra Ball surveillance plane near northeast China

A U.S. spy plane flew near northeast China and the Korean Peninsula the same day North Korea observed its founding anniversary.


Aviation tracker Aircraft Spots published data of the movements of the plane, a U.S. RC-135S Cobra Ball. Its map showed the plane flying over the Yellow Sea on Wednesday morning, South Korean news service News 1 reported.

The tracker said the Cobra Ball took off from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, and flew near China's Shandong Peninsula.

The move may be unprecedented. U.S. spy planes have flown missions in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea and have been deployed to monitor North Korea. Wednesday's flight may mark the first time the plane flew close to northern Chinese territory.

The RC-135S comes equipped with precision radar and special electro-optical instruments designed to observe ballistic missile flights at long range. The aircraft can also monitor missiles during boost and re-entry phases. The U.S. military may have begun to add the aircraft to bases in Japan in 2019.

Tensions have grown between the United States and China as the two countries remain at odds over issues ranging from defense to the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, the Pentagon said China plans to double its nuclear stockpile in the next 10 years. The bombs would be designed for loading on ballistic missiles. Last year, during an October military parade, China displayed its DF-41 nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles.

The United States may be concerned the Chinese military could soon conduct new missile tests.
 (upi)