Fighter jets scrambled to intercept two Russian bombers off Southampton

RAF Typhoon jets were scrambled to intercept the two Russian Tupolev Tu-
95 bombers – nicknamed the Bear – after they encroached into the Channel.

The highly unusual manoeuvre – the likes of which has not been seen in more
than 30 years, according to RAF experts – sparked a high alert and the UK
Foreign Office has since summoned the Russian ambassador to seek answers.

New Forest MP and House of Commons Defence Committee member
Julian Lewis said he believes it was part of a “war of nerves” after heightened
tension between the UK and Russia.

It comes after Russian president Vladimir Putin was referred to as a
“common criminal” at a public inquiry into the murder of spy Alexander
Litvinenko, while tensions continue to escalate between Russia and Ukraine.

Dr Lewis, below,  told the Daily Echo: “It is blindingly obvious the Russians are
sending us a signal by doing something different than they would normally do.

“This is part of a sort of war of nerves and, as has been pointed out, relations
between Russia and the UK are very low, partly because of the Litvinenko affair where we have a state-sponsored assassination  in public in our capital city using a method which put at risk all sorts of other people besides the intended target.

It comes as F15 fighter jets were spotted above Southampton just days ago, as reported by the Daily Echo.

“Confrontation can develop in a very rapid and unpredictable way as a result
of a sequence of events which people did not see coming and the Russians are
currently trying to say ‘We are tough and you shouldn’t mess round with us’.

“It has been noted over a period of months that they have been resuming the sorts of probing flights that were commonplace in the Cold War.

“The fact that they have done it in an unusual area makes it blindingly obvious that they are trying to send a typical Russian heavy-handed message.”

The two bombers did not enter UK airspace but flew in a highly unusual route past the west coast of Ireland before turning east through the Channel.

A pair of RAF jets from Lossiemouth in Scotland escorted them on their flight before ensuring that they returned using the same route.

An RAF spokesman said he had not heard of an incident like this in more than 30 years.

He added: ''Yesterday's mission lasted for over 12 hours; the operations room was both calm and focused. We constantly train for these scenarios so that we are well-rehearsed and ready to maintain the integrity of our airspace.''

The spokesman said: ''Thanks to our integration with air defence systems across Nato, we were able to begin mission planning early and therefore were ready to act in good time.

''Once ordered to by the Nato Combined Air Operations Centre in Germany, Typhoon quick reaction alert fighters were scrambled from RAF Lossiemouth to intercept and identify the aircraft. Integration with our colleagues in the Royal Navy provided additional surveillance coverage and added value to the mission.''

He said: “The only unusual thing about yesterday was that they flew past Ireland and along the Channel – we encounter aircraft on a regular basis and generally you see them to the north of the UK and in the North Sea.”

Southampton Airport and NATS Fareham declined to comment when
contacted by the Daily Echo

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: ''Russian aircraft manoeuvres yesterday are part of an increasing pattern of out-of-area operations by Russian aircraft.

''While the Russian planes did not enter sovereign UK airspace and were escorted by RAF Typhoons throughout the time they were in the UK area of interest, the Russian planes caused disruption to civil aviation.

''That is why we summoned the Russian Ambassador today to account for the incident.''