RAF scramble fighter jets after Russian planes spotted near UK airspace

RAF fighter jets were scrambled to intercept Russian military planes who were spotted flying close to British airspace today.

Russian Bear bombersGETTY IMAGES

The RAF sent Typhoons after Russian planes were spotted near UK airspace

The jets sent by Vladimir Putin's military are believed to be Bear bombers, which have been used for decades by Russia's army since the Soviet Union era.  

Typhoons were scrambled from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland to intercept the planes and escort them away from UK airspace.

The Russian planes are being escorted by the RAF in the UK area of interest.

Ministry of Defence spokesman

A Ministry of Defence (MoD) spokesman said: "RAF Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon fighter aircraft were launched today after Russian aircraft were identified flying close to UK airspace.

"The Russian planes are being escorted by the RAF in the UK area of interest."

The Bears did not enter the UK's sovereign airspace.

However, their appearance will be seen as the second display of Russia's military power near Britain in a matter of hours.

Earlier today British warship HMS Argyll shadowed a Russian destroyer and two support vessels as they entered the English Channel earlier today.

The MoD said no exercises were seen taking place following reports the vessels were set to carry out military drills in the waters.

HMS ArgyllPA

HMS Argyll (pictured) tracked Russian boats in the English Channel

James Nixey, head of the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House, said the Channel is a "legitimate shipping lane" but also said incidents like the one earlier today "didn't happen by accident".

He added: "Russia is trying to show it has got full spectrum capability warfare.

"It is not a prelude to war but it is a reminder that Russia likes to remind us of - that it is a power to be reckoned with, not a fading power, which might be closer to the reality.

"It can tell us that with a degree of braggadocio."

It follows a flurry of similar incidents in recent months and amid strained relations between Moscow and the international community over the Ukraine crisis.

In November the Royal Navy monitored a squadron of Russian warships as they moved through the Strait of Dover after carrying out exercises in the North Sea.

Then in February a Russian warship was tracked as it passed through the English Channel.

On that occasion Yaroslav Mudry and its accompanying tanker, the Kola, were sailing back to Russia after a deployment in the Mediterranean.

British warship HMS Argyll, based in Plymouth, Devon, was deployed and used its Lynx helicopter and sensors to locate and monitor the movement of the Russian ships off the coast of France and through the English Channel.

Today's incidents came as all branches of the British military take part in large-scale military exercises.

The Nato war games, which started on Saturday and run until April 24, include "significant naval and aerial activity" off the west and east coasts of Scotland, the Royal Navy has said.

There is also activity taking place at several other locations in the UK.

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