US warplanes for the second day in a row encountered Russian bombers and jet fighters off the coast of Alaska and intercepted them, the North American Aerospace Defense Command said in a statement Wednesday.
Two US F-22 jets intercepted two Russian Tu-95 bombers Tuesday after they were detected by an E-3 surveillance plane when they entered the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone, which extends about 200 miles off the state’s western coast, NORAD said in the statement.
The bombers then returned, escorted by two Russian Su-35 fighter jets, and were intercepted by another two F-22s.
“Specifically, two Russian bombers entered the ADIZ and were intercepted by two F-22s while an E-3 provided overall command and control,” the statement said. “The bombers exited and then re-entered the Alaskan ADIZ accompanied by two Su-35 fighter jets. NORAD committed an additional two F-22s and E-3 to relieve the initial intercept aircraft.”
On Monday, four F-22 jets intercepted four Russian bombers and two fighter jets in the Alaskan zone.
The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace in both incidents.
NORAD noted the frequency of the intercepts.
“NORAD has intercepted an avg of approx. six to seven Russian sorties entering its ADIZ since Russia resumed long range aviation patrols in 2007. This is the 4th and 5th intercepts this year and the 2nd day in a row that Russia has flown into the Alaskan ADIZ #WeHaveTheWatch,” NORAD said in a tweet.




