(VOVworld) – The Philippines plans to install a civilian flight-tracking system worth 1-million USD in the East Sea, after China landed its first test flights early this month on an airstrip  it illegally built on Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly islands.

The Philippines has expressed concern that China's test landings on Fiery Cross reef earlier this month would lay the groundwork for the declaration of an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) (AFP Photo/DigitalGlobe)

Rodante Joya, acting director of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), said the system will track an average of 200 civilian flights pass over the Spratlys daily. Last Wednesday, the Philippines formally lodged a diplomatic protest against China over its recent test flights to a newly built airstrip on Fiery Cross reef in the Spratly archipelago, said Assistant Secretary Charles Jose of the Philippine Foreign Department.