January 29 , 2017 – Fort Russ News –

Vesti  – by Inessa Sinchougova

A Russian fighter plane has ‘greeted’ a US Navy P-3 Orion reconnaissance aircraft, flying by within five feet (1.5m).

The US Department of Defense said that a Russian fighter pilot forced the crew of the P-3 to abort its mission. The crew failed to finish their tasks over the Black Sea, just off the Russian borders. At times, it approached Sevastopol at a distance of 40 kilometers.

The American reconnaissance aircraft departed from Souda Bay airbase on the Greek island of Crete. It spent hours  along the southern and south-western coast of the Crimea over the international waters of the Black Sea.

The flight path of the Russian Su-27 took place strictly in accordance with the international rules for the use of airspace, said the Ministry of Defense. The Russian fighter jet accompanied the American scout, observing all the necessary security measures.

“American pilots themselves are provoking the Russian military, flying close to the Russian border near the Black Sea,” said the first deputy head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Hero of Russia Andrei Krasov.

“The Lords of the United States need to study geography: do not confuse the seas and oceans,” the MP believes, “where is the Black Sea located and where is the US located? The US is far from the Black Sea, so unlike the Americans, our planes are not flying near their borders. “

Last week, Russian air defense fighters three times  intercepted foreign aircraft and drones that were approaching the airspace of the country. In total,  over the last seven days, reconnaissance aircraft have been spotted near the Russian border a total of ten times.