What Happened
Royal Navy Fighters Scrambled To Counter Unprofessional Russian Maneuvers
The UK’s Carrier Strike Group, led by the HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier, has been involved in a tense encounter with a Russian Tu-142 ‘Bear-F’ maritime patrol aircraft over the Norwegian Sea. Two F-35 fighters were scrambled to intercept the Russian plane, which flew unnecessarily close to the HMS Prince of Wales in an ‘unsafe and unprofessional’ manner. The UK’s Ministry of Defense stated that the Russian aircraft dropped multiple sonobuoys nearby and failed to respond on international safety frequencies. The incident occurred as the UK’s Carrier Strike Group is defending Europe and the North Atlantic, with F-35 jets conducting NATO air policing operations from the deck of HMS Prince of Wales for the first time. This development was first reported by AeroTime.