The Russian Ministry of Defence has released footage of a Russian fighter jet intercepting and shadowing a Swedish Gulfstream reconnaissance plane over the Baltic Sea. A video shows the Russian Su-27 approaching the Swedish plane for identification, and following it before the Gulfstream alters its direction and leaves. The Russian aircraft can also be seen taking off and landing in the footage. Both jets were flying over the Baltic Sea, in neutral airspace.
Russia’s Ministry of Defence reported on Thursday that the Swedish reconnaissance plane turned off its transponder while conducting its mission.
In a statement, the Ministry said: “An aerial target approaching Russia’s state border was spotted by Russian airspace controls.
“A Su-27 fighter jet from the Air Force was employed to intercept the target.”
The statement added that the Russian fighter jet “approached the object at a safe distance”.
The Swedish jet was “identified as a Gulfstream reconnaissance plane from the Swedish Air Force that was conducting a flight with its transponder switched off”.
Last week, the Russian Defence Ministry reported that jets had been scrambled five times in one week to prevent foreign planes from crossing into Russian airspace.
Russia spotted 23 foreign aircraft carrying out reconnaissance activities near its border, reported Russian Armed Forces newspaper Krasnaya Zvezda on Friday.
The newspaper’s infographic showed there had been no trespasses.
Krasnaya Zvezda also published an infographic showing 14 foreign aircrafts detected on 28 December.
Meanwhile, Britain’s air defences are set to receive a boost with the RAF’s new supersonic stealth jet expected to be declared fit for combat in the face of a “resurgent Russian threat”.
Justin Bronk, a Research Fellow at Rusi who specialises in combat airpower, told the Telegraph: “If the UK is going to have answers to a resurgent Russian threat we absolutely need Typhoon and F-35 working together, which needs quite a bit of modernisation.
“In theory, both complement each other brilliantly, but you need to get the modernisation before that becomes a reality.”