NORAD scrambles fighters, support aircraft to intercept Russian warplanes off Alaska
PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — An F-16 Fighting Falcon takes off from Eielson Air Force Base on Oct. 15, 2014 during Red Flag-Alaska 15-1. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Peter Reft)
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) scrambled fighter jets on Wednesday to identify and intercept four Russian military planes off Alaska, the U.S and Canadian defense organization said in a statement on Thursday.
NORAD detected and tracked two Russian Tu-95s and two Su-35s operating in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone, the statement said. NORAD said it responded by mobilizing an E-3, four F-16s, and four KC-135 tanker aircraft.
The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter U.S. or Canadian sovereign airspace, NORAD said.
The Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone is an area of international airspace that requires the ready identification of all aircraft for national security purposes, NORAD said.
(Reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones in Toronto; Editing by Katharine Jackson // REUTERS)
