NATO Air Command disclosed on Friday an urgent scramble of Norwegian F-35 fighter jets from Evenes base as Russian military aircraft encroached upon the fringes of NATO Allied airspace.
The Norwegian 5th Generation F-35 fighters were mobilized in response to the identification of two Tu-160 strategic bombers, accompanied by two MiG-31 interceptors and two Il-78 Midas aerial refueling aircraft.
As indicated by the Air Command’s report, these Russian aircraft were spotted in proximity to NATO’s monitored airspace.
The confrontation between the F-35s and the Russian combat aircraft resulted in the immediate retreat of the latter, swiftly returning to Russian territory following the encounter with the advanced Norwegian fighters.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Tu-160s conducted routine flights within international norms over neutral waters in the Barents and Norwegian Seas.