“Russian Warplane Tracked Near Alaska for Second Time in a Week, Says US Military”

The US military confirmed another Russian warplane was tracked while operating near the US state of Alaska on Monday, the second such incident in less than a week, VOA reports.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said it had “detected and tracked” a Russian military aircraft while operating in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

The Russian plane remained in international airspace and did not enter US or Canadian sovereign airspace, according to a NORAD press release.

Speaking to VOA on Wednesday, a NORAD official declined to identify the type of Russian warplane, adding that U.S. fighter jets did not take off and intercept the plane in this case.

The flight took place during several planned large-scale military exercises in and around Alaska.

Last Thursday, US F-16 and F-22 fighter jets intercepted six Russian aircraft, including TU-95 bombers, SU-35 fighters and IL-78 tankers, that had entered Alaska’s air defenses. NORAD said no Russian aircraft entered US or Canadian sovereign airspace.

The ADIZ is international airspace immediately adjacent to sovereign airspace “which requires the ready identification, location and control of all aircraft in the interest of national security,” according to NORAD.

“NORAD remains ready to use a range of response options in defense of North America,” the command said.