The EP-3 Aires is the electronic intelligence-gathering version of the P-3 Orion. It uses electronic snooping devices to 'fingerprint' foreign vessels, enabling intelligence staff to keep track of naval and commercial ship movements. While prowling the oceans, the EP-3 can monitor electronic communications over a large area; it is also capable of intercepting radar and radio signals from as far as 740 kilometers away. The US spying activities covered the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and the South China Sea.
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