PACFLT: Chinese ship lases P-8A

A Chinese destroyer, identified as among the newer ships to enter the fleet last year, lased a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft operating over international waters about 380 miles west of Guam, the U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a statement. The laser could not be seen by a human eye, but was captured by sensors on the airplane that has been upgraded with sensors and systems to support tracking surface and undersea targets. The incident, which PACFLT called “unsafe and unprofessional,” took place on Feb. 17, but just announced by the Navy. Weapons-grade lasers could potentially cause serious harm to aircrew and mariners, as well as ship and aircraft systems, PACFLT noted. The destroyer involved appears to be Hohhot, a Type 052D or Luyang III-class in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy. PACFLT’s statement says lasing violates both bilateral and multilateral agreements between the U.S. Navy and PLAN, including a 2014 agreement that specifically notes that the use of lasers could cause harm to personnel or damage to equipment. The P-8A is assigned to VP-45, based out of NAS Jacksonville, Fla., and is forward-deployed to Kadena Air Force Base in Okinawa, Japan. The squadron conducts routine operations, maritime patrol, and reconnaissance in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. (USNI News 02/27/20) https://news.usni.org/2020/02/27/chinese-destroyer-lases-u-s-navy-p-8a-plane-operating-near-guam