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| SitRep A place to discuss news and issues on current military situations around the world. (Please always be mindful of OpSec & CommSec) |
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| | #1 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Jersey Shore
Posts: 3,534
| Navy Intercepts Russian Bombers Feb 11 06:04 PM US/Eastern By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. fighter planes intercepted two Russian bombers, including one that buzzed an American aircraft carrier in the western Pacific during the weekend, The Associated Press has learned. A U.S. military official says that one Russian Tupolev 95 flew directly over the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz twice, at a low altitude of about 2,000 feet, while another bomber circled about 58 miles out. The official was speaking on condition of anonymity because the reports on the flights were classified as secret. The Saturday incident, which never escalated beyond the flyover, comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and Russia over U.S. plans for a missile defense system based in Poland and the Czech Republic. Such Russian bomber flights were common during the Cold War, but have been rare since. The bombers were among four Russian Tupolev 95s launched from Ukrainka in the middle of the night, including one that Japanese officials say violated their country's airspace over an uninhabited island south of Tokyo. U.S. officials tracked and monitored the bombers as two flew south along the Japanese coast, and two others flew farther east, coming closer to the Nimitz and the guided missile cruiser USS Princeton. As the bombers got about 500 miles out from the U.S. ships, four F/A- 18 fighters were launched from the Nimitz, the official said. The fighters intercepted the Russian bombers about 50 miles south of the Nimitz. At least two U.S. F/A-18 Hornets trailed the bomber as it came in low over the Nimitz twice, while one or two of the other U.S. fighters followed the second bomber as it circled. The official said there were no verbal communications between the U.S. and the Russians, and the Pentagon has not heard of any protests being filed by the United States. Historically, diplomatic protests were not filed in such incidents because they were so common during the Cold War era. This is the first time Russian Tupolevs have flown over or interacted with a U.S. carrier since 2004. In that incident, a Russian Tupolev flew over the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk in the Sea of Japan on Jan. 29, 2004. Since then, however, relations between the U.S. and Russia have deteriorated to their worst point since the Cold War, largely due to the United States' plans to put a radar system in the Czech Republic and 10 missile defense interceptors in Poland. The U.S. has defended the plan as necessary to protect its European allies from possible attacks by Iran. But the Kremlin has condemned the proposal, saying it would threaten Russia's security. "We are being forced to take retaliatory steps," said Russian President Vladimir Putin, who also warned that a new arms race is under way. Japan, meanwhile, filed a formal protest with the Russian Embassy in Tokyo after Saturday's incident, saying that one of the Russian bombers crossed into Japanese airspace for three minutes. Russia has denied there was an intrusion. TO
__________________ ![]() “Let's get Enterprise and Hornet turned into the wind." |
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| | #2 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: FL
Posts: 3,529
| 50 miles is too close... It's not like the bombers were traveling at mach 2. , |
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| | #3 |
| Member | Can the U.S. afford a arms race with so much $$ in Iraq and Afghanistan to name a few?
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| | #4 |
| Senior Member | There won't be an arms race; the U.S can continue develop at the current rate while Russia struggles to catch up at full speed, then overheat and burn again.
__________________ "When you go home tomorrow, don't expect anyone to know what you have been through. Even if they did know, most people probably wouldn't care anyway. Some of you may get the medals you deserve, many more of you will not. But remember this, all of you are now members of the front-line club, and that is the most exclusive club in the world." - Lt. Col. Matthew Maer CO 1st Battalion, the Princess of Wale's Royal Regiment. Camp Abu Naji, Oct. 2004 |
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| | #5 | |
| Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Dallas, Tx
Posts: 4,733
| Quote:
Oh, BTW Cosmo...........love the siggy!
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| | #6 |
| Older Than Dirt ![]() Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia
Posts: 7,988
| Methinks the airspace out over the ocean belongs to no one. There was a CAP launched, so if the Russians tried something they would pay with their lives. And.... they knew that ! Charles
__________________ ![]() Good people sleep peacefully in their beds at night, only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." George Orwell |
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| | #7 |
| Senior Member | This kind of thing has been happening for 50 years; as Charles rightly states the airspace over open ocean belongs to no one. The Russians were simply testing the water, so to speak. They wouldn't have been carrying anything except a few polaroid cameras and playboy magazines. If the U.S saw a credible threat to their task force then they would have intercepted them long before 50 miles.
__________________ "When you go home tomorrow, don't expect anyone to know what you have been through. Even if they did know, most people probably wouldn't care anyway. Some of you may get the medals you deserve, many more of you will not. But remember this, all of you are now members of the front-line club, and that is the most exclusive club in the world." - Lt. Col. Matthew Maer CO 1st Battalion, the Princess of Wale's Royal Regiment. Camp Abu Naji, Oct. 2004 |
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| | #8 |
| aka Dickcheese ![]() Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Washington State
Posts: 14,012
| What was cool was the pic of the F-22 with wing tanks with the Tu-142 in the background. Don't see that often.
__________________ "Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the [U.S.] Marines don't have that problem." -- Ronald Reagan Master of Duplicate Posts |
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| | #9 | ||
| Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: FL
Posts: 3,529
| Quote:
Quote:
I'd like to see them intercepted 200 miles out but that may mean CAP on the periphery... and very expensive aviation fuel and maintenance costs. . | ||
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| | #10 |
| Member | I agree it was not much of a threat but more a statement, and yes if they were credible threats they be splashed long before 50 miles. My thought, I'm not American so look at it from your neighbor to the north. Maybe I'm wrong but I don't see the U.S. military anywhere near the Reagan days. It is said your slipping into a depression, gold and oil reserves are a a low. So I look at both numbers and development and can America afford to keep the edge and take losses in Iraq and Afghanistan. And the fact it gives information about present hardware that China, thanks ti Israel, Russia and N.Korea are surely interested in how weapons work against Armour for example. As well are the former Soviet block now NATO countries still using some Soviet equipment? Ak-47 a quick example! If this continues to escalate won't that mean a change to NATO issue arms would be needed? I am I think a bit OT but it brought a lot of questions I don't have the knowledge to answer my own questions.
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| | #11 |
| Senior Member | On the contrary, allowing the Soviets *ahem* Russians believe they've achieved something is just laughing in their faces. The U.S were tracking them from the off, if they were seen as a threat then they would have been intercepted much-much earlier and I think the Russians know this. During the Cold War the Soviet bombers were buzzing U.S ships with U.S fighters in 'escort' - it's all a big game.
__________________ "When you go home tomorrow, don't expect anyone to know what you have been through. Even if they did know, most people probably wouldn't care anyway. Some of you may get the medals you deserve, many more of you will not. But remember this, all of you are now members of the front-line club, and that is the most exclusive club in the world." - Lt. Col. Matthew Maer CO 1st Battalion, the Princess of Wale's Royal Regiment. Camp Abu Naji, Oct. 2004 |
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| | #12 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bucharest
Posts: 909
| The Russians like to think they are playing cat and mouse with the U.S....in fact they are playing by themselves...
__________________ These airplanes we have today are no more than a perfection of a child's toy made of paper."Henri Coanda" |
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| | #13 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: A Swede living in Glasgow, Scotland
Posts: 17,331
| Tell me something, why would US want to plant a missile defence system in Czech Republic and Poland, are they members of NATO? Also, isn't this ALMOST the same as with the Cuba crisis in the 60's? (I know that it was missiles that time but still).....
__________________ ![]() JAN "Felicis Tredecim" "I´m going back to the front to relax" "THE BLACK CATS FLIES TONIGHT" "Find your enemy and shoot him down - everything else is unimportant!" "When you're out of F-8's... You're out of fighters!" ![]() |
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| | #14 | |
| Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Jersey Shore
Posts: 3,534
| Quote:
And here's a list of the current NATO members..... Belgium Bulgaria Canada Czech Rep Denmark Estonia France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Slovakia Slovenia Spain Turkey United Kingdom United States TO
__________________ ![]() “Let's get Enterprise and Hornet turned into the wind." | |
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| | #15 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Prescott Arizona USA
Posts: 507
| I'm sure the US was tracking the planes for some time...The US tracks all of Russia's movements ...And I'm sure Russia tracks all of the US's movements ... I'm sure no one can do anything in this world with out the other side keeping an eye on it...I'm with PlanD on this .. They let them get that close... |
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