North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) announced that the U.S. military intercepted two Russian and two Chinese bombers in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Wednesday ahead of Joe Biden's speech.
NORAD detected, tracked, and intercepted two Russian TU-95 and two PRC H-6 military aircraft operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on July 24, 2024. NORAD fighter jets from the United States and Canada conducted the intercept.
The Russian and PRC aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace. This Russian and PRC activity in the Alaska ADIZ is not seen as a threat, and NORAD will continue to monitor competitor activity near North America and meet presence with presence.
According to the U.S. Army, the Tupolev Tu-95 "Bear" is a "large, four-engine turboprop-powered strategic bomber and missile platform." The Xian H-6 (Hōng-6) is "a license-built version of the Soviet Tupolev Tu-16 twin-engine jet bomber, built for China's People's Liberation Army Air Force."
According to Air&Space Forces Magazine:
The event was the first time Russian and Chinese military aircraft entered the Alaska ADIZ at the same time, a U.S. defense official told Air & Space Forces Magazine. It was also the first time Chinese H-6s have encroached on the area, the official added.
According to NORAD, "An ADIZ begins where sovereign airspace ends and is a defined stretch of international airspace that requires the ready identification of all aircraft in the interest of national security."
The FAA says that aircraft entering the ADIZ must "comply with special security instructions issued by the FAA Administrator in the interest of national security."
In addition, "Pilots of aircraft that do not adhere to the procedures in the national security requirements for aircraft operations contained in this section may be intercepted, and/or detained and interviewed by federal, state, or local law enforcement or other government personnel."
According to NORAD's press release, "This Russian and PRC activity in the Alaska ADIZ is not seen as a threat, and NORAD will continue to monitor competitor activity near North America and meet presence with presence."
Not a threat? Just like they said the Chinese spy balloon was "not a threat"? Do you feel safe with the Russians and ChiComs teaming up to provoke the United States while we have a weakened and addled lame-duck president?
More From Air&Space:
Russia and China have become increasingly aligned against the United States and its allies since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
China has bolstered Russia’s military industry by providing it with microelectronics, machine tools, and other dual-use components, which have helped produce Russian weapons for its war in Ukraine. In 2023, 90 percent of Russia’s microelectronics imports, critical for the production of missiles, tanks, and aircraft, came from China, according to U.S. officials...
...The presence of the Chinese aircraft in the U.S. air defense identification zone was not unexpected. Last August, Russia and China conducted a large naval flotilla near Alaska that was shadowed by U.S. Navy ships. And Air Force Gen. Gregory M. Guillot, the head of NORAD, told the House Armed Services Committee in March that Chinese air operations in the U.S. air defense identification zone would likely come “as early as this year.”
Feel better? No? Remember this when you go to the polls in November.
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