Russia scrambles US Jets over Baltic Sea

DM Monitoring

MOSCOW: Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement “two air targets flying in the direction of the state border of the Russian Federation” were detected by radar, and were classified as “two US Air Force B-52 strategic bombers”. The US has not yet responded to the claim. A Russian Su-35 fighter jet was scrambled to intercept two US strategic bombers over the Baltic Sea, Russia’s defence ministry has said.
“Two air targets flying in the direction of the state border of the Russian Federation” were detected by radar on Monday, it said in a statement on the social media platform Telegram. The aircraft were identified as two US Air Force B-52 strategic bombers “flying in the direction of the Russian Federation’s state border”. A Su-35 fighter jet took to the air to prevent a border violation, the ministry continued. “After the foreign military aircraft moved away from the Russian Federation state border, the Russian fighter returned to its base airfield,” it added.
The National Defense Center of the Russian Federation said: “The flight of the Russian fighter was carried out in strict accordance with the international rules for the use of airspace.
“Violations of the state border of the Russian Federation are not allowed.”
The US has not yet responded to the claim. It said two Russian Su-27 jets flew close to the MQ-9 Reaper before one hit its propeller and forced remote operators to crash it into the ocean.
The incident highlighted the increasing risk of direct confrontation between the superpowers as fighting continues in nearby Ukraine.
American officials accused the Russian pilots of flying in a “reckless, environmentally unsound and unprofessional manner”.
Moscow denied the jets behaved dangerously and said they didn’t come into contact with the drone, claiming it crashed due to “sharp manoeuvring”. Meanwhile, Several large, 12-wheeled military vehicles carrying mobile missile launchers rumbled across the southwest Oklahoma prairie on Tuesday as part of a training exercise at the Fort Sill Army Post.
Spilling out of the sand-colored vehicles and quickly setting up the launchers were some of the 65 Ukrainian soldiers who have been training at the installation since January on how to use the defensive missile system to track and shoot down enemy aircraft.
U.S. military officials invited journalists from across the country and Europe, including The Associated Press, to watch the soldiers train.

The Patriot missile system, which hasn’t yet been deployed in Ukraine, is particularly useful for defending population centers and critical infrastructure, said Brig. Gen. Shane Morgan, Fort Sill’s commanding general.

The soldiers are expected to leave Oklahoma in the next several days for additional training in Europe before they deploy to Ukraine with a Patriot missile battery that typically includes six mobile launchers, a mobile radar, a power generator and an engagement control center.