Chinese military exercises forced US pilots to urgently change routes

American airline pilots were caught off guard by a Chinese warning about military exercises near Australia. This was reported by Reuters, according to UNN.

Details

Commercial airline pilots were surprised to receive reports of a Chinese naval live-fire exercise near Australia while in flight. This forced some crews to quickly change their routes through busy air corridors, according to satellite text messages that were transmitted to the pilots.

The incident underscores that civil aviation is increasingly facing the need to adapt quickly to geopolitical risks and military threats. Recent events, such as last year's strikes between Israel and Iran, demonstrate the growing danger to commercial air travel in high-tension regions.

Of particular concern is the fact that these were China's first military exercises in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand. This is evidence of China's intensified military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, which has already provoked a reaction from the international community.

According to Australian officials, a pilot of a Virgin Australia flight was the first to learn about the exercise. He intercepted a message from the Chinese navy on the 121.5 MHz emergency radio channel, which is usually used for emergency communication between aircraft. The incident occurred on Friday at 9:58 a.m. Sydney time (22:58 UTC on Thursday). The information was then transmitted to the Australian military through air traffic controllers.

Due to the uncertainty of the situation, air traffic control began sending out warnings to aircraft in the region. Among them were Singapore Airlines flights from Christchurch to Singapore and Air New Zealand flights from Auckland to Melbourne. The messages were sent at around 11:30 am, allowing the crews to react and adjust their routes in time.

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