Posted on 07/20/2007 11:27:11 AM PDT by lizol
Russian bombers test UK patience again
By Wojciech Moskwa in Oslo
July 20, 2007 09:59pm
TWO Russian Tu-95 bombers made unusually long sorties over the North Sea yesterday, forcing both Norway and Britain to scramble fighter jets to follow the Russian planes, Norway's armed forces said.
The Russian bombers stayed in international air space during their flight, which took them as far south as the region between Norway's Stavanger and Aberdeen in Scotland - centres of the North Sea oil industry.
The incident, the latest of several such sorties in past days, occurred during a period of heightened diplomatic tensions between Russia and Britain over Moscow's refusal to extradite a murder suspect.
“It's a long time since they (Russian bombers) have been that far south,” John Inge Oegland, spokesman for Norway's armed forces, told Reuters.
"I would say that is rather unusual.
“Since they were so far south, the RAF (Britain's Royal Air Force) followed the same procedure and went up to identify them."
When Russian military planes approach Norwegian air space, Norway scrambles fighters to meet and follow them.
Russia's air force commander said this week that such sorties were training flights for the long-range bombers.
“The pilots flew on routes used for international flights,” Colonel Yuri Pomelov, an information officer for the Russian military, said.
"We strictly followed international agreements on the use of airspace."
Cold War
Norway said it was not unusual for Russian military planes to fly over international waters across the Barents Sea and then either turn south into the Norwegian Sea or continue flying west over the Atlantic, before turning around.
Oegland said the apparent increase in Russian sorties along Norwegian air space follows a major exercise by Russia's Northern Fleet in the Russian Barents Sea.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
I thought the CF100 had an air intake in the nose(?). I dunno.
Nevermind...I’m thinking of the F-100 Super Sabre.
Why are the Russians playing these games?
Ping
You mean fighters equipped with Plasma Stealth...
Bump.
I saw one at an airshow at Mildenhall a few years back, and boy were those things LOUD! The LOUDEST plane I've ever heard. Did I tell you how LOUD they were? Boy, were they ever LOUD.
Old photo. That’s an RCAF CF-101 Voodoo interceptor.
Sure looks like a B-1A...
In America’s hour of greatest need, a fantastic computer from the past rises to save its country from the Russian bear.
SAGE: THE MOTION PICTURE
ping
Members of the pro-Kremlin youth movement 'Nashi' walk past a poster showing Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Nashi summer camp on Lake Seliger, some 300 km (186 miles) north-west of Moscow July 17, 2007. Some 10,000 youths from all over Russia live for up to two weeks in the camp, where they do sports and attend political and socially oriented lectures, the organisers said. REUTERS/Thomas Peter
Putin's version of Russia's HJ 'Hitler Youth' continue their neo-Soviet indoctrination at 'summer camp'.
10,000 young Russians the new Red Guards to fight Kremlin's opponents
British companies and envoys feel Russian backlash
No Idle Summer Days For Russia's Political Youth
Youth Groups Created by Kremlin Serve Putin's Cause in the Streets
The Lightening had terrible range if you wanted to intercept bombers & could carry around 2 air to air missiles.
Perfect for the job it was designed for, however. Scramble; straight up; find your Bear or Bison in minutes over the North Sea; do the business; straight down; coffeecupful of fuel left; your cup of coffee still warm in the mess.
That is a Tu-142 Bear J of the Russian Navy. The Bears involved in the flights last week were Tu-95MS Bear Hs.
No Lightnings in mothballs. Only ones in private hands witha few airframes flying. The Lightnings climb records have long since been overtaken.
Nothing went into UK airspace. The Russians announce a time window to NATO for these out of area flights. It is all part of the deconfliction. Russia and NATO still have laison offices. The have been doing this for quite some considerable time now. Last year the Russians went over to the US/Canadian ADIZs at the culmination of an announced strategic exercise.
During 2001 two Tu-160s went halway down the UK Eastern coastline. The Russians had announced their intentions and put a 4 to 5 day timeline on the flights.
Don’t believe everything you read in the news.
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