EP-3 crew to debrief in Hawai'i for two days
| • | Crew comes home |
By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer
The crew of a U.S. surveillance plane that had been held by China arrives in Hawai'i this morning to a brass band, brief speeches and two days of intense debriefing.
The 24 crewmen and women of the Navy EP-3E Aries II will be questioned at Pearl Harbor by 12 separate groups of debriefers interested in hearing about operational, intelligence, psychological and other issues arising from their encounter with a Chinese fighter jet 11 days ago.
The Americans were flying a four-engine turboprop crammed with surveillance equipment over the South China Sea when it collided with a Chinese fighter jet April 1, forcing an emergency landing on the island of Hainan.
After several days of tension between China and the United States, the crew was released yesterday, after the United States apologized for the death of the Chinese fighter pilot and acknowledged that the EP-3 had not sought verbal permission to land.
Rear Adm. Michael L. Holmes, who commands the Pacific Fleet's P-3 planes here, called the U.S. pilot, Lt. Shane Osborn, "a hero," and said Osborn's actions are responsible for allowing 24 people to come home.
The crew will have little time in Hawai'i to visit with family or friends from their home base in Whidbey Island, Wash.
A huge celebration, including thousands of people and local dignitaries, is planned for the crew's return to Washington on Saturday, Holmes said.
The crew flew from China to Guam and then headed to Hickam Air Force Base on a C-17 transport.
The EP-3 remains in China.
