Two US B-1B strategic bombers are buzzed by Russian Su-27 fighter jet over the Baltic sea in latest aerial flashpoint for two superpowers
- This interception is the latest in a series of aerial standoffs between Russian and NATO aircrafts since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine
An Su-27 fighter jet was scrambled after two US B-1B strategic bombers approached the Russian boarder via the Baltic Sea on Tuesday afternoon, state media reports.
The report from the news agency RIA cited a government source in the defense ministry.
That source said that the American warplanes ‘performed a U-turn’ after the Su-27 jet arrived at the scene.
The defense ministry said that the B-1B bombers were spotted by Russian air traffic controllers who in turn notified the country’s defense forces.
‘As the Russian fighter approached them, the foreign strategic bombers made a U-turn from the state border of the Russian Federation. The Russian aircraft safely returned to its home airbase, preventing the violation of Russia’s state border,’ a defense ministry source told TASS.
Russia scrambled an Su-27 fighter jet, similar to the ones shown here, to intercept two American bombers as they approached the Russian border on Tuesday afternoon
A US Air Force B-1 strategic bomber is one of the most sophisticated aircraft in the US military’s arsenal
This latest incident comes as Moscow and Washington DC continue to standoff over the US’s consistent support of Ukraine following Russia’s 2022 invasion. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the latest U.S. pledges to back Ukraine would bear no fruit in the war.
‘Mr. Biden hasn’t mentioned that all those efforts to deter Russia have proven inefficient,’ Peskov said. ‘They will remain inefficient in the future.’
This is the second time in less than six months that Russian jets have intercepted American B-1 strategic bombers.
At the time, a Russian defense ministry spokesperson said that an Su-27 jet escorted the bombers away from Russia’s border.
A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed the presence of the bombers in the area and said that it was part of a routine training operation.
‘So we do have two B-1 bombers that are part of a bomber task force… that we fly regularly around the world in various countries,’ Brigadier General Pat Ryder said at the time.
‘This is a long-planned exercise in Europe and my understanding is that it was a safe and professional interaction with Russian aircraft. So nothing significant to report on that front,’ he added.
While just four days ago two Russian Su-27 fighter jets were scrambled in response to the approach by the RC-135 ‘electronic warfare aircraft’ and its escorts, Moscow said.
‘A pair of Su-27 fighters from the air defence duty force were flown to identify the air targets and prevent violation of the state border of the Russian Federation,’ the country’s defence ministry said.
‘The Russian fighter crews identified the aerial targets as an RC-135 radio-technical reconnaissance and electronic warfare aircraft and two British Air Force Typhoon multirole fighters.’
Footage taken from an aircraft’s cockpit shows the planes leaving trails across the sky.
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