Britain's RAF intercepts six Russian bombers over Black Sea

Britain's Royal Air Force said Wednesday it had intercepted six Russian bomber planes flying close to NATO air space over the Black Sea.

The Eurofighter Typhoons launched early Monday from their base in Romania after the Russian Su-24 Fencer planes were spotted, the RAF said in a statement.

It said there had been "significant Russian air activity through most of the night".

The Russian aircraft eventually turned towards Crimea, the RAF said.

The operation "was in accordance with the NATO Enhanced Air Policing (eAP) mission, whereby the RAF operates alongside its NATO ally to deter Russian aggression, reassure our friends in Romania and assure NATO allies of our commitment to collective defence," the statement said.

Romanian Defence Minister Mihai Fifor earlier said such "provocations" by Russia had become "frequent" in recent months.

Four RAF Typhoons have been deployed at the Mihail Kogalniceanu air base in southeast Romania where several hundred US troops are also stationed.

The move was part of NATO's beefed-up defences on its eastern flank following Moscow's annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The US Air Force has four F-15C Eagles based in neighbouring Bulgaria.

Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com

Tweet

Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly

paypal only

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal

Sri Lanka gets US military funding as China vies for influence
Colombo (AFP) Aug 13, 2018
The United States announced Monday it would grant Sri Lanka $39 million to boost maritime security as China develops its strategic hold on the Indian Ocean island. The State Department will provide the funds as "foreign military financing", pending congressional approval, the US embassy in Colombo said. "We look forward to discussing with the government of Sri Lanka how this contribution can support our Bay of Bengal initiative and Sri Lanka's humanitarian assistance and disaster response priori ... read more