Free Republic

The U.S. military tracked and intercepted two Russian bomber pilots flying off the Alaskan coast on Monday, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command. The two Russian Tu-95 Bear-H bomber aircraft were “entering and operating within the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ),” the release explained, and “remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace.” Their incursion of Alaska’s ADIZ, which is the international airspace adjacent to an area, “is not seen as a threat nor is the activity seen as provocative,” the release continued. Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon spokesman, declined to...

When two of Russia’s most modern, nuclear-capable bombers landed in Venezuela earlier this week, American officials quickly took note. #Russia's government has sent bombers halfway around the world to #Venezuela. The Russian and Venezuelan people should see this for what it is: two corrupt governments squandering public funds, and squelching liberty and freedom while their people suffer. pic.twitter.com/bCBGbGtaHT — Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) December 11, 2018 The arrival of the Tu-160 “White Swan” strategic bombers in Caracas on Monday serves to remind the United States that Russia can still project military might into the Western hemisphere. The Tu-160 bombers were manufactured...

With the situation in the Ukraine escalating and the US continuing to call for sanctions against RussiaÂ’s financial and political elite, Vladimir Putin is now not only mobilizing tens of thousands of troops on his Western front, but sending intercontinental strategic bombers across the Pacific Ocean. According to the US military, itÂ’s the first time since the cold war that RussiaÂ’s incursions have come this close to America. WhatÂ’s even more alarming is that Russia is making it clear that any attack on the Motherland would likely lead to widespread bombardment of western interests. Nuclear capable Russian bombers have been...

AMSTERDAM (AP) -- The Dutch defense department says several NATO member countries scrambled jets Wednesday afternoon after a pair of Russian bomber planes approached their airspace over the North Sea.The Dutch ministry identified the planes as two Russian TU-95 Bears, and said it had launched two F-16s from Volkel air force base to intercept them. The Russian jets were escorted by aircraft from the Netherlands, Britain and Denmark until they departed.

-- Russia is increasingly flexing its military muscles by penetrating Western airspace. European defense officials have been worried about an increasing number of Russian bombers entering Western airspace. A pair of Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack bombers -- the largest jet-powered combat aircraft ever built, capable of carrying nuclear missiles -- last month entered British airspace over Northern Scotland, Deutsche Welle reports. Two Tornado fighter jets from the British air force intercepted the supersonic bombers, accompanying them for four hours until they left British airspace. Similar incidents have occurred in recent years; London has said Russian planes have penetrated British airspace more...

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez says two Russian bombers have arrived in the country to carry out training flights. The Russian Air Force said the bombers would be based in Venezuela for several days and fly over neutral waters. Earlier this week Russia confirmed that it would send a Navy squadron and long- range patrol planes for joint exercises with Venezuela in November. Mr Chavez has developed close relations with Moscow, including the purchase of Russian arms and co-operation on oil. Hugo Chavez announced that two Tu-160 bombers would carry out manoeuvres, saying that it was part of a move towards...

A November 28, 2008 Collins Report prediction seems to becoming true. That essay read: “The Russians have started the push that might come to shove and the heat has been turned up on Barack Obama. "Because of the sagging price of oil, the Russians have to do something or watch their country slip into anarchy. They need a crisis to move oil prices back up and Cuba is a very handy place to foment one. They are probing Obama for weakness…. but [The Russian’s] real targets were Venezuela and Guantanamo Cuba. “[Russian President] Medvedev talked with America hater Hugo Chavez,...

Over the past several years, the Russian Federation has taken a posture that is increasingly antagonistic and hostile toward the US and NATO. Recent Russian military activity and the Kremlin’s stances on Iran and Kosovo indicate a potential for confrontation with the West. We assess that the Kosovo situation in particular could be a catalyst for this confrontation. Kosovo’s quest for independence from Serbia has been largely ignored by Western policymakers and the media, but this volatile issue could quickly become a global crisis, pitting Kosovo and its NATO allies against the Russian Federation. Putin has explicitly stated that they...

0/06/2006 | 12:34 Russian bombers passed aviation tower unnoticed The flight tower at Keflavík airport was seemingly unaware of two Russian bombers that flew through Icelandic airspace last Friday. This is claimed by Hjördís Gudmundsdóttir, press officer of the Icelandic Directorate of Civil Aviation (DCAA), although the Minister for Foreign Affairs has made claims to the contrary. RÚV online reports. Gudmundsdóttir says that the DCAA only registers aircraft that have their radars on, and this is not always the case with military aircraft. This was an unusual incident, as Icelandic aviation authorities are usually notified of military rehearsals near the...