U.S. Jets Intercept, Escort Russian Bombers Off Alaskan Coast

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - Two U.S. Air Force jets scrambled Wednesday to intercept two Russian bombers flying near Alaska's coast and escorted the planes out of the exclusive air zone without incident.

U.S. military officials said the Russian turbo-prop Tupolev-95 planes were spotted via radar about 500 miles from the Alaskan coast. Two F-15s from from Elmendorf Air Force Base were immediately dispatched to meet the T-95s.

The U.S. bans unidentified aircrafts or planes without flight plans in its air exclusion zone.

The incident marked the second time that U.S. fighter jets escorted Russian bombers this year. In February, F-15s also met and flew with four T-95s that approached the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in the Pacific Ocean.