Virgin pilot alerted Australia to Chinese warships ‘live firing’ after drills began

Air traffic authorities only discovered Chinese warships were conducting a live-fire exercise in the Tasman Strait 30 minutes after it began thanks to an alert by a Virgin pilot rather than a warning from government officials.

Airservices Australia officials told Senate estimates hearings on Monday night that 49 flights were forced to divert their flight plans because of the exercise on Friday.

The incident marked the latest challenge to the government’s efforts to stabilise relations with China, with the federal opposition and national security experts branding it a provocative act that deserves condemnation.

The exercises were conducted approximately 640 kilometres off the NSW South Coast on Friday in international waters.

Airservices Australia chief executive Rob Sharp told estimates his organisation only found out the Chinese task group was planning a live firing exercise at 9.58am on Friday.

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“It was in fact Virgin Australia, advising that a foreign warship was broadcasting that they were conducting live firing 300 nautical miles east of our coast,” Sharp said.“That was how we first found out about the issue.”

Deputy chief executive Peter Curran said the drill had occurred at a “relatively busy time of the day”, forcing 49 aircraft to change their flight paths, including some which were in the air at the time.

“There are a number of flight paths that go from Sydney across to various places in New Zealand and from Brisbane, they converge to the south east there,” Curran said.