Update: 04/12/01 - Heading Home, Crew Arrives in Hawaii

The 24 crew members of the downed Navy Navy EP-3 reconnaissance plane detained for 11 days on China's Hainan Island have departed Guam and are due to arrive in Honolulu, Hawaii around noon Eastern Time.

On April 1, the propeller-driven EP-3 and its crew of 21 men and three women, collided with one of several Chinese fighter jets over the South China Sea. The crippled American plane was forced to make an emergency landing on Hainan Island, violating Chinese air space in the process. The pilot of the Chinese plane was never found and has been declared dead.

According to Navy officials, the crew will remain in Hawaii for at least two days undergoing medical examinations and intelligence debriefings.

Dateline: 04/11/01 - Release of Crew Negotiated

The twenty-four US Navy fliers detained on China's Hainan Island will be released after completion of "necessary procedures," according to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued early today.

The statement read, in part, "Since the U.S. government has already said 'very sorry' to the Chinese people, the Chinese government has, out of humanitarian considerations, decided to allow the 24 people from the U.S. spy plane to leave after completion of the necessary arrangements."

The American flyers have been held since April 1, when their Navy EP-3 reconnaissance plane collided with Chinese fighter jet over the South China Sea. The EP-3 was forced to land on Hainan Island where it remains in the custody of the Chinese Government. The search for the missing pilot of the Chinese jet, which crashed into ocean, has been abandoned.

Exactly when the Americans will be released remains unknown, but in an April 11 statement, the White House Press Secretary stated, "The US Ambassador has received verbal assurances from the Chinese government that the air crew will be allowed to leave promptly. Ambassador Prueher has delivered to the Chinese government a letter concerning this incident and we are working out with the Chinese government the arrangements for departure."

According to this April 11 letter from US Ambassador Prueher to Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Tang, a further meeting will be held on April 18 to discuss details of the incident. "Both sides agree to hold a meeting to discuss the incident.  My government understands and expects that our aircrew will be permitted to depart China as soon as possible," states Ambassador Prueher in the letter.

In a brief statement from the White House, President Bush expressed his "sorrow for the loss of the [Chinese] pilot," stating, "Our prayers are with his wife and his child." 

President Bush also acknowledged that the incident and ongoing negotiations had been difficult for both the US and China.

Media broadcasts in China were reporting that the Americans would be released only after "appropriate travel procedures" were completed.

According the the Beijing government, the US has acknowledged that the Navy aircraft did violate Chinese airspace, but did so only during the emergency landing procedure. The actual collision happened over international waters.

Return of the EP-3 reconnaissance plane is expected to be negotiated in the April 18 meeting between US and Chinese officials.