Australia’s Department of Defence reported that a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft was intercepted on October 19, 2025, by a Su-35S fighter of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) while conducting a surveillance mission over the South China Sea.
According to the official Australian statement, the Chinese fighter “released flares in close proximity to the P-8A,” describing the maneuver as “unsafe and unprofessional,” since it “endangered the aircraft and its crew.” However, the Ministry of Defence clarified that no injuries or damage to the Australian aircraft were reported.
“The Australian Government has expressed its concerns to the Chinese Government following this unsafe and unprofessional interaction. The safety and wellbeing of our Australian Defence Force personnel remain our highest priority,” the statement read.
Australia also reaffirmed that its operations “are conducted in accordance with international law, exercising the freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters and airspace,” emphasizing that “all maritime claims must be consistent with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).”
For its part, the Southern Theater Command of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) stated that the Australian aircraft “entered Chinese territorial airspace over the Xisha Qundao Islands without the approval of the Chinese Government.” In response, China’s Air Force and Navy “organized forces to track, monitor, and warn the Australian aircraft in accordance with laws and regulations,” said Colonel Li Jianjian, spokesperson for the Southern Theater Command.
Li asserted that the Australian flight “seriously violated China’s sovereignty and could have caused maritime or aerial accidents,” urging Canberra to “immediately cease such provocative actions.” He added that Chinese troops “remain on high alert to resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, security, and regional stability.”
The incident occurred amid ongoing tensions between the two countries in the South China Sea. Earlier this year, in February, a similar episode took place when a Chinese J-16 fighter intercepted an Australian P-8 Poseidon, deploying flares approximately 30 meters from the aircraft. At that time, the Chinese government also claimed that the Australian aircraft “deliberately entered its airspace over the Xisha Qundao without authorization,” and defended its response as “legitimate, professional, and restrained.”
Military experts have attributed the new incident to Australia’s strategy of “demonstrating loyalty to the United States within the framework of strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific.” According to Chinese military analyst Zhang Junshe, the deployment of Australian aircraft near Chinese maritime zones “seeks alignment with U.S. strategy and deliberately provokes Beijing.”
The Chinese Air Force maintains that it will continue to take “powerful countermeasures” against any incursions into what it considers its sovereign airspace, while Australia insists that its patrol flights are conducted in international areas in accordance with international law.
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