US scrambles fighter jets to intercept Russian military planes

The U.S. has scrambled fighter jets after Russian military aircraft were detected near Alaska for the second time this week.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said Friday that it had tracked and intercepted two Russian TU-142 military aircraft operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

An ADIZ is the area around sovereign airspace that requires any aircraft entering it to give information on its planned course, destination, and any additional details about its trip. It stretches 150 miles from the American coastline, while U.S. territorial airspace and waters start 12 miles from the coastline.

NORAD said in a statement that the Russian aircraft stayed in international airspace and that their activity in the Alaska ADIZ “occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat.” Newsweek has contacted the Russian defense ministry for comment.

NORAD said it uses a layered defense network of satellites, ground-based and airborne radars and fighter aircraft to detect and track aircraft and as such “remains ready to employ a number of response options in defense of North America.”

However, it is the second such incident in two days with NORAD saying on Wednesday that it had “detected and tracked” Russian aircraft also operating in the Alaska ADIZ, although unlike on Friday, it did not specify what kind of planes they were.

Since the start of Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, NORAD, which is made up of U.S. and Canadian forces, has intercepted Russian aircraft flying near Alaska numerous times amid heightened tensions between Moscow and NATO.

In February this year, the U.S. detected four Russian warplanes in the Alaska ADIZ. In July 2023, NORAD said that Russian aircraft had made at least four incursions into airspace close to Alaska since the beginning of that year.

There were two intercepts of Russian warplanes in the region in February 2023 while the same month a Chinese spy balloon was detected near Alaska before heading across the U.S. and being shot down off the coast of South Carolina.

In July 2024, the Pentagon said Russian and Chinese bombers—two Russian Tu-95 and two Chinese H-6 military aircraft—were detected flying near Alaska, in what Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin described as the first such joint operation in the region between the allies.

On Tuesday, Moscow said it had launched massive naval and air drills with China that will last until Monday and involves more than 400 naval vessels, at least 120 military aircraft and 90,000 troops.

The Russian defense ministry said that at least 15 countries have been invited to observe the maneuvers of the “Ocean-2024” drills.