Proper response from the Navy should have been to call for air support from the local carrier/air wing, obtain weapons lock both aircraft and surface craft, on their approach and maintain it until the aircraft was out of range with the scrambled fighters run escort until the threat source was identified. Too bad we don’t have the old Tomcat with phoenix missles anymore, one of the greatest radar/weapon combinations put into an aircraft. Weapon lock, launch and heading back for a landing approach even before the enemy aircraft receives a weapons lock. The Tomcat was one of my main reasons for joining the Navy, was heartbroken while in A school when news broke that the Cat was being phased out. My love for that bird still continues though.
To all you jokesters in freeperville, please don’t post any gif, pic, or meme from “Top Gun” lol, never mind, I have a sense of humor, post away jokesters, post away! Lol
This happened in the Baltic. The nearest carrier is in the Persian Gulf: Aircraft Carrier Locations. The Russian Pilot could complete his not only his sortie, but a nice period of leave, before our Navy could get carrier based fighters over the Donald Cook.
In the old days (70s & 80s) of playing with the Soviet forces, we could track them with missile or gunfire control radar, but could not lock on them. They in turn would routinely track our aircraft or ships, with their fire control radar, but would not lock up on us.