The United States and Canada have sent fighter jets to intercept Russian and Chinese bombers flying near Alaska.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), a joint effort between the United States and Canada, reported on July 24 that there were two Russian TU-95 Bear bombers and one Russian H-6 bomber flying near Alaska so we continued the intercept.
NORAD said the bomber was in international airspace in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone and was not considered a threat and did not enter U.S. or Canadian sovereign airspace.
US defense officials said it was the first time aircraft from the two countries had been intercepted while operating together. It was also the first time a Russian H-6 bomber had entered the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone.
The interception operation was carried out by American F-16 and F-35 fighter jets, in addition to Canadian CF-18 fighter jets.
NORAD said at the time that Russian warplanes entering the Alaskan air defense zone were not unusual: “It's something that happens regularly.”
But the presence of Chinese aircraft appears to be new. In March, General Gregory Gillott, head of U.S. Northern Command, said China was moving north toward the North Pole.
“What we’ve seen is the desire and willingness of the Chinese people to engage in military activity there,” Gillow said. “We’ve seen them at sea. We’ve seen them under the guise of technical or scientific research. But we certainly think of it as a multi-tasking operation. Including the military. We expect to see air activity in Alaska early this year. It’s a very big concern.”
Compiled from CNN
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