US fighter jets intercepted Russian fighters and bombers flying near Alaska for the second time in two days, though the aircraft did not enter US or Canadian airspace, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (Norad) said Thursday.
Two Norad F-35s intercepted Russian TU-95 Bear bombers as well as SU-30 and SU-35 fighters on Tuesday. The aircraft were approaching Alaska’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) when they were intercepted, said Norad, which is up to 200 miles (about 320 kilometers) from the coast.
The Russian planes remained outside US-Canadian sovereign airspace, which extends 12 miles (about 20 kilometers) off the coast.
A day earlier, two NORAD F-16s intercepted TU-95s and SU-35s that had already entered the Alaskan ADIZ while remaining outside US airspace.
In both cases, the Russians sent a total of four planes, according to NORAD.
NORAD said it did not view the activity of the Russian planes as a provocation or threat.
