Russian jet intercepts US Navy plane over Black Sea

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW

A Russian Su-27 fighter jet intercepted a U.S. Navy reconnaissance plane Monday over the Black Sea, but the incident was resolved without any hostilities.

The incident took place Monday morning when the Russian military detected an unknown aircraft around 10 a.m. Moscow time (0700GMT), Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.

The Russian jet approached and identified the aircraft as a U.S. Navy EP-3E Aries spy plane, it said.

The Su-27 then “accompanied it, preventing violations of the border of the airspace of the Russian Federation in compliance with all necessary security measures", the statement added.

After resolving the issue “in a safe manner,” the Su-27 returned to its base.

The duration of the intercept was about 25 minutes, during which the Su-27 made two passes near the EP-3E aircraft.

In a statement, the U.S. Navy said their plane had to apply its afterburner after the first pass and faced turbulence and vibrations.

"While the Russian military is within its right to exercise within international airspace, this interaction was irresponsible," the U.S. Navy said. "We expect them to behave within international standards set to ensure safety and to prevent incidents."

*Umar Farooq contributed to this story.