Taiwan Strait Military Encounter 1997

On May 17, 1997, during a period of elevated cross-strait military tension following the 1996 Taiwan missile crisis, Republic of China Air Force F-16A pilots flying combat air patrol over the Taiwan Strait encountered a large disc-shaped craft at 50,000 feet. The craft's electronic warfare capabilities completely defeated the F-16's APG-68 radar — returning false positional data and ultimately causing total radar failure. Pilots made sustained visual contact describing a structured metallic disc approximately 200 meters in diameter. Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone radar tracked the object but experienced similar sensor degradation. The encounter lasted 25 minutes before the craft accelerated toward mainland China at extreme speed. Taiwan's National Security Bureau classified the incident and notified US forces in the region via the US-Taiwan defense channel. American ELINT assets monitoring the Taiwan Strait detected significant electromagnetic anomalies consistent with the reported craft. The incident occurred as both US and Chinese military intelligence were intensely focused on cross-strait activity, giving the encounter particular strategic sensitivity.