Video Shows Russian Warplane Buzzing American Jet Near US Coast

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The United States Department of Defense on Monday released a video showing a Russian fighter jet conducting a dangerous maneuver directed at an American aircraft off Alaska.

According to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the aerial encounter occurred in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on September 23, where it detected and tracked four Russian military aircraft in international airspace.

NORAD, a U.S. and Canadian binational military organization, is charged with aerospace warning and control for North America. An ADIZ is a defined stretch of international airspace that requires the ready identification of all aircraft in the interest of national security.

NORAD employs a layered defense network of satellites, ground-based and airborne radars, and fighter aircraft to track planes and inform appropriate actions.

In Focus

On September 23, a U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jet was conducting a routine intercept of a Russian Tu-95 bomber in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone when a Russian Su-35 fighter jet conducted an unsafe maneuver directed at the F-16.

Launch Slideshow 3 PHOTOS The dramatic footage, which was taken from the cockpit of a U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jet, showed a Russian Su-35 execute what NORAD called an unsafe maneuver when the American warplane was conducting an intercept of a Russian Tu-95 bomber.

Based on the video and photos released by NORAD, the Su-35, which was flying into a small gap between the F-16 and the Tu-95, appeared on the left side of the armed American jet and sped away, forcing the U.S. pilot to turn his aircraft to the right.

"The conduct of one Russian Su-35 was unsafe, unprofessional, and endangered all—not what you'd see in a professional air force," said General Gregory Guillot, the commander of NORAD and the U.S. Northern Command, which is charged with homeland defense.

NORAD aircraft flew a safe and disciplined intercept at the time, he added. The Russian aircraft did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace and were not seen as a threat as this Russian activity in the Alaskan ADIZ occurred regularly, NORAD said.

Newsweek has contacted the defense ministry in Moscow for comment by email.

Russia's state news agency Tass reported that, quoting a retired Russian air force pilot, the pilot of the Su-35 had shown "extreme courage" as the aircraft sought to drive away the F-16.

After the September 10 beginning of Russian exercise Ocean-2024, which ended a week later, NORAD reported four incidents of Russian military aircraft operating in the Alaskan ADIZ. The air defense zone covers a large area of airspace over the waters around Alaska.

The September 23 encounter is the fifth incident reported by NORAD in the last month.

The encounter between U.S. and Russian military aircraft near Alaska has parallels with an incident that occurred over the Black Sea in August 2020, when a Russian Su-27 fighter jet crossed within 100 feet of an American B-52 bomber, causing turbulence for the latter.

Dangerous intercepts are nothing new and include the Hainan Island incident of April 2001, when a U.S. Navy spy plane collided with a Chinese fighter jet, resulting in the death of a Chinese pilot who was notorious for "cowboy maneuvers."

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