Two Russian Tu-95s, similar to the one pictured, were among four Russian warplanes that neared Alaska on Wednesday. File Photo by Yuri Kochetkov/EPA
Sept. 25 (UPI) -- The North American Aerospace Defense Command scrambled fighter jets in response to four Russian warplanes nearing Alaska, the defense organization said.
The interception took place Wednesday in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone. The two Russian Tu-95 bombers and two Su-35s fighter jets, however, did not enter American or Canadian airspace.
NORAD responded by scrambling an E-3 Sentry, four F-16 fighter jets and four KC-135 tankers. The organization said Russian activity in this area happens "regularly and is not seen as a threat."
"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," NORAD said in a statement about the encounter.
