The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has confirmed that Russian military aircraft has been detected off the Alaskan coast over four of the last five days.
In the latest incident NORAD said that on September 15, 2024, two Russian IL-38 military aircraft were tracked while flying in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
A NORAD spokesperson was keen to state that the aircraft “remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace” and that Russian planes are “regularly” detected in the area and not viewed as a threat.
In similar incidents, two IL-38 military aircraft were tracked on September 14, 2024, operating within ADIZ and on September 13, 2024, two TU-142s were detected by NORAD.
The latest spate of incidents appeared to begin on September 11, 2024, when two unconfirmed Russian military aircraft carried out flights in the same area.
“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.
The Ilyushin Il-38 and Tupolev Tu-142 are both maritime patrol aircraft and anti-submarine warfare turboprop aircraft.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) detected and tracked two Russian IL-38 military aircraft operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Sept. 15, 2024.
— North American Aerospace Defense Command (@NORADCommand) September 16, 2024
The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or…
The incidents come as the United States (US) President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met in Washington on September 14, 2024, to hold talks over a number of issues, including tactical decisions on Ukraine.
Ukraine wants to use Storm Shadow missiles to strike Russian military targets on its territory, but President Vladamir Putin has warned that such operations would amount to “direct participation” by NATO in its war against its neighbors.
NORAD is a defense network of satellites, ground-based and airborne radars and fighter aircraft to detect and track aircraft operated jointly by the US and Canada.