Russian military aircraft returned to the skies off Alaska’s coast Monday. And once again the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, dispatched fighter jets to intercept and accompany them through international airspace.
NORAD said in a news release that it detected and tracked four Russian aircraft that flew into the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone, or ADIZ, earlier Monday. A spokesperson said the Russian formation included two Russian Tu-95 Bear bombers and two Su-35 Flanker jet fighters.
The spokesperson said Tuesday that NORAD scrambled four F-16s fighters and a reconnaissance aircraft to escort the Russian formation through the zone.
The F-16s likely are based at Eielson Air Force Base but NORAD spokespersons routinely decline to provide that information, citing operational security.
Russian aircraft frequently fly through the Alaska ADIZ, an area that separates international and U.S. sovereign airspace. The NORAD news release noted that the Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace, adding that the Russian flights are not seen as a threat.
Monday’s sortie was the first time Russian aircraft have returned to the Alaska ID Zone since early last week, when two maritime surveillance aircraft were detected and tracked. That was the last of four formations known to have flown through the ADIZ from Sept. 11 through Sept. 15.
Tim Ellis is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.
