- Pentagon reported one of its Boeing P-8 Poseidon patrol planes was intercepted
- American aircraft has been described as a next-generation surveillance plane
- Russian Su-30 fighter jet said to have come within as little as 50ft of US aircraft
- US plane thought to have been over the Black Sea surveying Putin’s new subs
The US has slammed what it described as an unsafe intercept on one of its next-generation planes after a Russian fighter jet came within a mere 15 metres of it.
The Pentagon reported one of its Boeing P-8 Poseidon patrol aircraft was flying low above the Black Sea on Saturday.
The American plane has been described as a next-generation long-range maritime patrol aircraft, and it’s understood it was in the area on an evidence gathering mission on Vladimir Putin’s new submarines.
The Pentagon reported one of its Boeing P-8 Poseidon (pictured) patrol aircraft was flying low above the Black Sea on Saturday
The US has slammed what it described as an unsafe intercept on one of its next-generation planes after a Russian Su-30 fighter jet came within a mere 15m of it
Lieutenant Colonel Michelle Baldanza, a spokeswoman for the Pentagon described the Russian jet’s maneuver as unsafe and she told the Defence Blog it came as close as 50 feet from the US aircraft in international airspace.
The plane is designed to improve anti-submarine warfare and it also has anti-surface missile capabilities.
It is described as an anti-submarine warfare, anti-shipping, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft and was intercepted by a Russian Su-30 fighter jet.
It is not clear what it was doing over the Black Sea, but experts believe it might have been on an intelligence-gathering mission to gather intelligence on the new Russian Varshavyanka submarines.
The new subs – called Project 636.3 – is an improved version of the country’s Kilo-class vessels.
Commissioned in late December 2014, the submarine is deemed to be one of the quietest in the world.
The stealth submarine is so advanced it is dubbed the ‘black hole’ because it is so hard to detect.
It has the capability to strike land, surface and underwater targets and Vladimir Putin has already constructed six of them.