Navy intercepts Russian bombers

[defendandprotect]

The Russians are coming! The Russians are Coming!


Navy intercepts Russian bombers By LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press Writer
Mon Feb 11, 6:04 PM ET



WASHINGTON - U.S. fighter planes intercepted two Russian bombers, including one that buzzed an American aircraft carrier in the western Pacific during the weekend, The Associated Press has learned.

A U.S. military official says that one Russian Tupolev 95 flew directly over the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz twice, at a low altitude of about 2,000 feet, while another bomber circled about 58 miles out. The official was speaking on condition of anonymity because the reports on the flights were classified as secret.

The Saturday incident, which never escalated beyond the flyover, comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and Russia over U.S. plans for a missile defense system based in Poland and the Czech Republic.

Such Russian bomber flights were common during the Cold War, but have been rare since.

The bombers were among four Russian Tupolev 95s launched from Ukrainka in the middle of the night, including one that Japanese officials say violated their country's airspace over an uninhabited island south of Tokyo.

U.S. officials tracked and monitored the bombers as two flew south along the Japanese coast, and two others flew farther east, coming closer to the Nimitz and the guided missile cruiser USS Princeton.

[DCKit]

1. As much as the neocons would like to restart the cold war...

I don't think Vlad's in any mood to play. It's just too damn expensive.

They'll keep saber-rattling while howling "Terra! Terra! Terra!" hoping enough of us will continue to fall for it until they slink from the WH in shame - hopefully into the loving arms of the U.S. Marshall service, but, hey, as long as they leave.

[Wizard777]

5. Bush has already started a new arms race. Sooooo.......n/t

[Lex1775]

2. *Rattle, Rattle, Rattle*

The Squids could've knocked those old tin cans down a couple of hundred miles away. This is just more of the "Hey, just letting you know we're still around" games that Putin has been playing lately.

[Lex1775]

3. Oops, double post.

[Recursion]

4. Wait... you mean the Air Force responds to planes that aren't where they should be?

Hmm

[defendandprotect]

6. Yeah -- like Gulf of Tonkin and WMD . . . you know -- wink, wink ---

[jmowreader]

7. Bears are GREAT spyplanes

The old Tu-95 Bear came in a variant that was outfitted for electronic intelligence, one set up for photorecon and probably one configured for communications intelligence. These were probably intel birds...it's a bitch to kill a carrier from 58 miles out even if you have cruise missiles, but that's a good range to stand off if you want to watch one.

[DemoTex]

8. Big deal. Navy Air doing its job. Fleet CAP.

Combat Air Patrol. Happens all the time. Both sides.

On edit: As an old spy-plane pilot (Lockheed SP-2E) in Viet Nam, I know this drill. More-or-less!


Two turnin' .. two burnin'

[paparush]

9. Japanese Intercepted a Russian Bomber a few days ago...