Lyce · Hybrid Watch
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Russian strategic bombers and fighters intercepted by NORAD over international airspace near Alaska.
North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) reported that several Russian strategic bombers and fighter jets were detected and intercepted as they flew in international airspace near Alaska in mid-February 2023. The formation, which included long-range Tu-95MS bombers and accompanying fighters, entered the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone but remained outside U.S. and Canadian sovereign airspace, and NORAD emphasised that the aircraft did not pose a direct threat. Two U.S. F-16 fighters were scrambled to intercept and visually identify the Russian planes, shadowing them for the duration of their flight in the area before they turned back. NORAD stressed that it had anticipated the activity and framed it as a “routine” event, noting that Russia regularly conducts long-range aviation missions over the Bering Sea and other neutral waters, while the United States similarly flies reconnaissance and patrol missions near other countries’ borders. Moscow, for its part, stated that Tu-95MS strategic missile carriers and Su-30 jets had conducted flights over the neutral waters of the Bering Sea as part of long-range aviation training, and that comparable missions had also taken place in the Arctic and near Norway. The interception occurred against a backdrop of heightened North American air-defence alertness following the shoot-down of a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon and other unidentified airborne objects over the continent earlier in February, which put public and political attention on any foreign military activity near U.S. airspace.
E/M/R/S scores
- EExistence0/4 · Not assessed
- MIntent0/4 · Not assessed
- RRussian actor link0/4 · Not assessed
- SRussian state responsibility0/4 · Not assessed
Facts
No facts
Sources
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Russian strategic bombers and fighters intercepted by NORAD over international airspace near Alaska.
- Role
- discovery_lead
- Date
- 2023-02-12T23:00:00Z
North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) reported that several Russian strategic bombers and fighter jets were detected and intercepted as they flew in international airspace near Alaska in mid-February 2023. The formation, which included long-range Tu-95MS bombers and accompanying fighters, entered the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone but remained outside U.S. and Canadian sovereign airspace, and NORAD emphasised that the aircraft did not pose a direct threat. Two U.S. F-16 fighters were scrambled to intercept and visually identify the Russian planes, shadowing them for the duration of their flight in the area before they turned back. NORAD stressed that it had anticipated the activity and framed it as a “routine” event, noting that Russia regularly conducts long-range aviation missions over the Bering Sea and other neutral waters, while the United States similarly flies reconnaissance and patrol missions near other countries’ borders. Moscow, for its part, stated that Tu-95MS strategic missile carriers and Su-30 jets had conducted flights over the neutral waters of the Bering Sea as part of long-range aviation training, and that comparable missions had also taken place in the Arctic and near Norway. The interception occurred against a backdrop of heightened North American air-defence alertness following the shoot-down of a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon and other unidentified airborne objects over the continent earlier in February, which put public and political attention on any foreign military activity near U.S. airspace.