China/South China Sea: China Building Possible Airfield in S. China Sea: US

Nov 22, 2014 | AFP/The West Australian
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China is building a massive island in the South China Sea that could host an airfield in an area where Beijing is locked in bitter territorial disputes with neighboring states, a US military spokesman said.

The vast land reclamation project on the Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly Islands is one of several pursued by China but the first that could accommodate an airstrip, Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Pool said.

"It appears that's what they're working toward," Pool told AFP.

A harbor also has been dug out on the east side of the reef that appears large enough for tankers and naval warships.