BREAKING
The US has sent out nine aircraft to escort clear two bombers, two fighter jets and a spy plane that were observed over coastal Air Defense Identification Zone.
The American fighter jets were scrambled to intercept five Russian warplanes that were spotted off Alaska.
Two Tu-95 long-range strategic bombers, two Su-35 fighter planes, and one A-50 spy plane crossing Alaska’s coastal Air Defense Identification Zone were detected and tracked, according to US.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command said it had responded by launching two F-16s, two F-35s, one E-3, and four KC-135s to intercept the planes, positively identify them, and escort them out of the ADIZ.
The Russian activity in the zone was described by the command as a regular occurrence that was not considered a threat.
While according to CBS News, the five planes had not crossed into U.S. or Canadian airspace.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said that Alaska’s ADIZ is the point at which American and Canadian jurisdiction ends and is a “defined stretch of international airspace that requires the ready identification of all aircraft in the interest of national security”.
In September of last year a similar occurrence took place, as two Tu-95s and two Su-35s were spotted in the same zone, prompting defense command to send out an E-3 early warning and control aircraft, followed by four F-16s and four KC-135 tanker planes to lead them clear.
At the time, NORAD said that even though the presence of Russian aircraft in the zone was non-aggressive and common, it could still test the preparedness of the US and NATO.
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