The maritime situation in the West Philippine Sea has yet to calm, yet there is already a looming concern on the instability in the country's airspace.
President Marco lamented this as he condemned on Sunday, Aug. 11, the air incident in Bajo de Masinloc earlier this week, stressing that the "actions of the People’s Liberation Army - Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft were unjustified, illegal and reckless."
"The actions of the People’s Liberation Army - Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft were unjustified, illegal and reckless, especially as the PAF (Philippine Air Force) aircraft was undertaking a routine maritime security operation in Philippine sovereign airspace," Marcos said in a statement.
"We have hardly started to calm the waters, and it is already worrying that there could be instability in our airspace," he lamented.
While he strongly condemned the air incident, the President also said that he "stands by our brave men and women of the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines), especially the Philippine Air Force."
Marcos further said that the Philippines remains committed "proper diplomacy and peaceful means of resolving disputes."
"However, we strongly urge China to demonstrate that it is fully capable of responsible action, both in the seas and in the skies," Marcos said.
According to AFP chief Romeo Brawner Jr., a Philippine Air Force NC-212i aircraft was conducting a routine maritime patrol over Bajo de Masinloc on Aug. 8, when two aircraft from the PLAAF executed a dangerous maneuver at around 9 a.m. and dropped flares in the path of our NC-212i.
Brawner added that the NC-212i safely returned to Clark Air Base in Pampanga about an hour later and nobody was harmed.