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Intercepted: US ‘routine’ recon over Baltic Sea buzzed by Russian Flanker
RC-135 U.S. reconnaissance aircraft (Reuters//U.S. Air Force)
US recon aircraft intercepted by Russian fighter jet over Baltic – Pentagon
An American RC-135U reconnaissance aircraft was buzzed by a Russian Sukhoi Su-27 fighter jet over the Baltic Sea near Russia’s Kaliningrad Region, according to the Pentagon, which accused the Russian pilot of coming dangerously close to the US aircraft.
“On the morning of April 7, a US RC-135U, flying a routine route in international airspace, was intercepted by a Russian Su-27 Flanker in an unsafe and unprofessional manner,” the Washington Free Beacon (WFB) cited Pentagon spokeswoman Eileen M. Lainez as saying.
“The United States is raising this incident with Russia in the appropriate diplomatic and official channels,” she added.
The official said that a Russian Su-27 (NATO designation – Flanker) passed within a half-dozen meters of the unarmed reconnaissance aircraft, whereas the Sukhoi’s wingspan is 14.7 meters. The Pentagon spokeswoman dubbed the behavior of Russian pilot “reckless” and endangering the safety of the RC-135 crew.
Major-General Igor Konashenkov, spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, said that the interception was launched after “Russian air defense radars spotted an unidentified air target over the Baltic Sea making steady progress toward the national border.” The aircraft had its transponder turned off, Konashenkov said.
Continue this article at RT.com
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Source: http://21stcenturywire.com/2015/04/11/intercepted-us-routine-recon-over-baltic-sea-buzzed-by-russian-fighter-jet/
