US Air Force carries out reconnaissance flight near Russian borders in the Barents Sea
On Sunday, October 20, a US Air Force Boeing RC-135U Combat strategic reconnaissance aircraft flew over the international borders of the Barents Sea near Russia’s maritime borders in the Murmansk region, Interfax reports, citing the monitoring data of western aviation resources.
The aircraft bearing number 64-14849 and call sign LUIGI16 took off from the Mildenhall airbase of the Royal Air Forces of Great Britain. The flight lasted over three hours.
On Thursday, October 18, a USAF Boeing RC-135S Rivet (Cobra) designed for monitoring launches of ballistic missiles also carried out a similar flight. It also spent few hours in the sky over the waters of the Barents Sea where the exercises of cruisers of the Russian Northern Fleet took place. According to the Russian military, they were conducting submarine surveillance and torpedo attack drills at the time.
The Boeing RC-135 large reconnaissance aircraft is used by the United States Air Force and British Royal Air Force to support for reconnaissance operations. It was used over the Crimea in July, flying over the waters of the Black Sea near Kuban and around the Russian-annexed Crimea.