On April 1, 2001, a Chinese military jet collided with a US Navy EP-3 intelligence aircraft off the coast of China. The American plane was damaged and made an emergency landing on the Chinese island of Hainan.
The Chinese government detained the 24-member crew and the plane for 11 days, while diplomatic efforts between the United States and China finally resulted in the crew’s release and the return of the aircraft.
This international incident is still remembered and marked in China, and the Chinese pilot, who died in the collision, is hailed as a martyr and a hero.
Here & Now‘s Scott Tong remembers what happened and looks at how the U.S.-China relationship has changed over the past two decades, leading many experts to believe that if a similar incident occurred today, it would most likely become a major crisis and standoff between the two countries.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
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