Navy: Foreign jet harassed PHL fishing boat off Spratlys

An unidentified foreign jet harassed a Filipino fishing boat last month at the disputed Spratly Islands in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama said Monday. The incident occurred June 4 at the Dalagang Bukid Shoal, located about 131 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa City, according to Pama. “The unidentified jet buzzed our fishing boat about 20 to 30 feet from the top of the mast of the fishing boat," Pama said. “The fishermen were not able to identify the origin [of the plane]. They just said it’s a jet because it produced a loud sound." He said the jet “frightened" the fishermen. “It’s not a normal thing for an aircraft to fly over you at that altitude. Initially, it's some sort of warning. What are doing here, something like that," Pama said. The Philippines has been accusing China, a fellow claimant in the dispute over the Spratly Islands, of recently making aggressive moves to intensify its claim over the oil- and mineral-rich group of islands. Last March, two Chinese patrol ships harassed a Department of Energy ship conducting oil explorations at the Reed Bank. Two months later, two Air Force bomber planes on reconnaissance patrol at the Spratlys were harassed by fighter jets believed to be from China. Apart from China and the Philippines, the other claimants to the Spratlys are Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia. - KBK, GMA News