U.S., Canadian fighters intercept Russian bombers off Alaska coast

WASHINGTON — American and Canadian fighter jets intercepted a pair of Russian Tu-95 Bear bombers in international airspace off the coast of Alaska on Thursday, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command.

Two U.S. F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets and two Canadian CF-18 Hornet fighters on Thursday morning intercepted the long-range, nuclear-capable Russian bombers north of Alaska over the Beaufort Sea, NORAD said in a statement. The Russian aircraft were within the Alaskan and Canadian Air Defense Identification Zones, which stretch roughly 200 miles from the U.S. and Canadian coasts. Both nations expect aircraft entering the area to positively identify themselves in the interest of national security.

This marked the second time this month that Russian aircraft were observed in the area. NORAD said two Tu-142 Russian maritime reconnaissance anti-submarine warfare aircraft entered the zone west of Alaska on Aug. 1, but they were not intercepted at that time.

The Russian planes never entered sovereign American or Canadian airspace in either incident, NORAD said.

“NORAD’s top priority is defending Canada and the United States. NORAD operators identified and intercepted the Russian aircraft flying near our nations,” Air Force Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy, the NORAD commander, said in a statement about Thursday’s incident.

Read more: https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/military/2019/08/09/us-canadian-fighters-intercept-russian-bombers-off-alaska-coast/
(Anchorage Daily News)