Two Russian military planes conducted an unsafe intercept of an American B-52 bomber as it flew over international waters on Friday, according to the U.S. military.
O’Shaughnessy said the Russian aircraft loitered about 2,500 feet above a camp that was established for the submarine exercise. He said the Russian aircraft “loitered” with an F-22 and and F-18 on their wing.
While alarming, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, U.S. Air Force Gen. Tod Wolters said unsafe intercepts between NATO and Russian aircraft have decreased over the past two years, and are in most cases safe.
“In many of the cases where they’re unsafe, when you take a look at the experience level of the operators that were involved, it typically turns into a young man or woman that was probably just hot-dogging it a little bit more than they should." - U.S. Air Force Gen. Tod Wolters, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of U.S. European Command
Is it a conspiracy theory? The head of the U.S. Air Force in the Pacific has suggested that a recent Russian-Chinese air patrol may be an attempt to divide regional partners. The event resulted in warning shots fired by intercepting South Korean jets.