The Russian Defence Ministry said on Wednesday that two Tu-160 strategic nuclear bombers flew over the neutral waters of the Barents and Norwegian seas in a planned flight.
The Tu-160 bombers which are specifically designed to destroy targets in some of the world’s remotest locations were escorted some of the fastest combat jets, the MiG-31 supersonic aircraft.
The Ministry said on Telegram, “During the flight, the crews of long-range aviation aircraft carried out night and day refuelling in the air.”
Also on Wednesday three Russian warplanes were intercepted by the German Luftwaffe, the RAF and French air forces in international airspace over the Baltic Sea.
Aufklärungsflieger abgefangen. 🇩🇪 und 🇬🇧 #Eurofighter wurden alarmiert, um 3 Militärmaschinen zu identifizieren. Die zwei SU-27 Flanker und eine IL-20 aus 🇷🇺 flogen erneut ohne Transpondersignal im int. Luftraum über der Ostsee. #SecuringTheSkies #VAPB @NATO @GermanyNATO… pic.twitter.com/sOY4CPkrbe
— Team Luftwaffe (@Team_Luftwaffe) April 26, 2023
The Luftwaffe, the French and the RAF intercepted two Sukhoi Su-27 fighter jets and one Ilyushin Il-20 aircraft over the Baltic Sea.
The Luftwaffe said the Russian aircraft were flying with their transponders off, this provides other aircraft and air traffic control with the information as to the identification of the planes.
