[Regnum] The Pentagon is alarmed by data on patrols of Russian and Chinese bombers over the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska. This was stated by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
“These relations (between Moscow and Beijing – Ed.) are a constant concern for us,” Associated Press quotes him as saying.
He said the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) "detected, tracked and intercepted" two Russian Tu-95s and two Chinese H-6s.
According to Austin, the planes did not enter American airspace, but only approached to a distance of about 320 km from the coast, but were still within the air defense zone.
The article notes that this was the first recorded instance of Chinese bombers flying within the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone. It is also the first time that aircraft from the two countries took off from the same base in northeastern Russia.
As reported by Regnum News Agency, on July 25, the Russian Aerospace Forces and the Chinese Air Force conducted a joint air patrol. As specified by the Defense Ministry, the air group included Tu-95MS strategic missile carriers of the Russian Aerospace Forces and Hong-6K strategic bombers of the PLA Air Force.
The aircraft carried out air patrols over the waters of the Chukchi and Bering Seas and the northern part of the Pacific Ocean. The ministry emphasized that the aircraft did not violate the airspace of foreign states during the patrol; the air group acted strictly in accordance with the provisions of international law. They were accompanied by Su-30SM and Su-35S fighters of the Russian Aerospace Forces.
The duration of the joint flight exceeded five hours. The event was held as part of the implementation of the military cooperation plan for 2024.
NORAD reported on July 24 that two Russian Aerospace Force bombers and two Chinese Air Force aircraft were spotted in international airspace off the coast of Alaska.
In June 2023, the Russian Aerospace Forces' Tu-95MS strategic missile carriers and the Chinese Air Force's Hong-6K strategic bombers conducted a joint air patrol in the Asia-Pacific region. The flight lasted about eight hours, with fighter cover provided by Russian Su-35S, Su-30SM and Chinese Jian-11B.