Chinese Jet Barrel-Rolls Over U.S. Navy Plane Prompting Protest
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A Chinese fighter jet in international waters buzzed a U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft within 20 feet and did a barrel roll over it in what the White House called a provocation.
The Aug. 19 incident took place about 135 miles (217 kilometers) east of Hainan Island, the southernmost tip of China, amid international tensions over China’s increasingly assertive territorial claims. U.S. and Chinese planes have had several close encounters over the sea since March.