U.S. says "very sorry" for loss of Chinese pilot, lack of landing clearance

WASHINGTON (AFX) - The U.S. said in a letter to China it was "very sorry" for the loss of Beijing's fighter pilot in a collision with a U.S. spy plane and for the surveillance aircraft's entering Chinese airspace without verbal clearance.	    "Please convey to the Chinese people and to the family of pilot Wang Wei that we are very sorry for their loss," the U.S. ambassador in Beijing, Joseph Prueher, said in a letter to Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan.	    "We are very sorry the entering of China's airspace and the landing did not have verbal clearance, but very pleased the crew landed safely," Prueher said in the missive, which was released here by the White House. 

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