- Category
- Latest news
Russia Sends Tu-22M3 Bombers on Five-Hour Black Sea Flight Under Fighter Escort
- Authors
![Photo of Roman Kohanets]( "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
-111f0e5095e02c02446ffed57bfb0ab1.jpeg "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
Russian Tu-22M3 long-range bombers carried out a more than five-hour flight over neutral waters of the Black Sea on December 16 under escort from Su-35S and Su-27 fighters, according to Army Recognition on December 17.
Russia’s Defense Ministry described the sortie as a planned mission in international airspace and said long-range aviation crews regularly conduct similar flights over the Arctic, the North Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and the Baltic and Black seas.
Every article pushes back against disinformation. Your support keeps our team in the field.
In a statement carried by Russian and regional media, the ministry said “all flights of Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft are carried out in strict accordance with international rules for the use of airspace.”
Army Recognition stated that the Tu-22M3 bombers can be armed with Kh-22 and Kh-101 missiles, whereas the Russian Defense Ministry's statement on the Black Sea flight did not specify the weapons loadout.
Earlier, it was reported that Russia conducted a more than five-hour Tu-22M3 patrol in international airspace under Su-35S and Su-27 escort, with NATO air-policing aircraft tracking and identifying the formation.
-72b63a4e0c8c475ad81fe3eed3f63729.jpeg "Photo of Cyril Barabaltchouk")
