Revealed: Four European nations scrambled air forces to intercept nuclear-capable Russian Blackjack bombers that flew from Norway to Spain last month

  • RAF Typhoons scrambled to meet Russian planes off Shetland islands
  • Four nations were involved in the intercept - France, UK, Norway and Spain
  • The Russian bombers are capable of carrying up to 16 nuclear missiles
  •  Spanish media have said it is the furthest south they have seen bombers 

Two Russian Blackjack bombers were intercepted flying back and forth to Northern Spain from the direction of Norway, it has emerged.  

Four nations - Norway, the UK, France and Spain - all deployed their own jets as the TU-160 planes skirted the airspace of each country, flying around the UK.

Spanish media have said it is the furthest south an operation like this has had to take place.

This image of one of the Russian bombers was tweeted by the Ministry of Defence today

This image of one of the Russian bombers was tweeted by the Ministry of Defence today

 Norway was the first to detect the two Russian jets and scrambled two F-16 fighters to accompany them towards the north of Scotland.

Two RAF Typhoon jets then scrambled to intercept Russian Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack bombers just off the coast of Scotland.  

Typhoon aircraft were launched from RAF Lossiemouth in northern Scotland during the incident, but the Ministry of Defence said the Russian jets did not enter UK airspace.

A RAF Typhoon jet similar to two that have been scrambled to intercept Russian planes (file picture)

A RAF Typhoon jet similar to two that have been scrambled to intercept Russian planes (file picture)

Ministry of Defence tweeted this image of one of the Russian bombers off Shetland
Vladimir Putin, who is being accused of brinkmanship

The incident involving the Russian Blackjack bombers (one of which is pictured, off Shetland) is the latest example of brinkmanship by President Putin (right) 

Another pair of Typhoons from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire also took off but were not required. 

Skirting to the west of Ireland, the two Russian planes then head to Brittany.

Two French Rafale jets took over and intercepted the Blackjacks 100km from Brittany and escorted them to Mont-de-Marsan.

As the two jets flew along the Iberian coast, two F-18 Spanish fighter planes took over and all four aircraft got as far as Bilbao before turning back. 

A statement by the French ministry of defence said:  'These interceptions and escorts were conducted in close cooperation between the two NATO operation centers of the north and south and the national air operations center (ANOC) in Lyon Mont-Verdun.' 

The incident occurred on September 22, but the full details are only now emerging.  

The Typhoon jets were scrambled from RAF Lossiemouth to deal with the Russian jets which flew close to British airspace off Shetland

The Typhoon jets were scrambled from RAF Lossiemouth to deal with the Russian jets which flew close to British airspace off Shetland

In February this Blackjack bomber, capable of carrying 16 nuclear missiles, was intercepted by RAF Typhoons as it headed for UK airspace

In February this Blackjack bomber, capable of carrying 16 nuclear missiles, was intercepted by RAF Typhoons as it headed for UK airspace

MoD handout photo dated 10/03/2010 of a ARAF Tornado F3 fighter near Stornoway, on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. 
PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Wednesday March 24, 2010. RAF jets have been scrambled 20 times in the last year to intercept Russian aircraft over British airspace, it was revealed today. The revelation came as defence chiefs released photographs of two Russian Blackjack bombers intercepted over Scotland. 
Photo credit should read: MoD Crown Copyright/PA Wire

A Russian Blackjack bomber (Tupolev Tu 160) being intercepted an RAF Tornado F3 fighter near Stornoway, on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, in March 2014

In November last year Typhoons were scrambled from Lossiemouth to intercept two Blackjack bombers in an almost identical incident and a month earlier Typhoons intercepted Russian jets over the North Sea.

In May 2015 two Bear strategic bombers were intercepted after being spotted north of Scotland.

Vladimir Putin has previously been accused of Cold War-style 'brinkmanship' over similar incidents with Nato aircraft across Europe, including more than 100 Russian planes intercepted in 2014. 

Tensions mounted further when Turkish forces shot down a Russian jet after it allegedly entered Turkish airspace while operating missions in Syria.

HOW THE TU-160 IS THE WORLD'S LARGEST OPERATIONAL BOMBER

The Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack, which is also known as the White Swan, is the world's largest operational bomber.

The Blackjack can fly twice the speed of sound

The Blackjack can fly twice the speed of sound

It has also been billed as the world's largest combat aircraft, supersonic aircraft and variable-sweep aircraft - and been compared to the American B-1 bomber.

Measuring 178ft long and with a spread wing span of 183ft, the aircraft has a range of more than 7,500 miles.

With a crew of four men, the Blackjack entered service in 1987 and can carry 12 Kh-55 cruise missiles as well as 24 Kh-15 attack missiles.

The aircraft is part of the Long Range Aviation branch of the Russian Air Force which is involved with long-range nuclear weapons.

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Intercepts of Russian aircraft by NATO have increased over the last year amid heightened tensions between the West and Moscow over the Ukraine crisis. 

The Blackjack is the world's largest operational bomber and is nicknamed the White Swan by the pilots. 

It can travel at twice the speed of sound and carry 16 nuclear missiles. 

It is possible the bombers were taking an unusual route to Syria, after a similar incident last November when two Blackjacks came close to entering UK airspace and Typhoons were scrambled from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland to intercept them.

The Russian aircraft were making an out-of-the-ordinary 8,000-mile trip round Europe on their way to a bombing mission in Syria.

The  bombers departed from Olengorsk, in the Kola Peninsula and made their way westbound, coming close to Norwegian and British airspace, where they were met by the RAF.

Once intercepted by Britain's Typhoons, they made their way over the Atlantic Ocean and headed back east to Gibraltar, before firing their missiles from the Mediterranean Sea.

After flying over Syria, they took the usual route home, over Iran and the Caspian Sea, according to The Aviationist.  

In October, Typhoons intercepted a Russian Tu-95 'Bear' over the North Sea and Russian warships passed through the Channel and had to be escorted by the Navy.

MOUNTING TENSIONS:THE LATEST IN A SERIES OF RUSSIAN INTERCEPTIONS

The scrambling of Typhoons from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire to intercept two nuclear-capable Russian Blackjack bombers is just the latest in a long line of incidents of Russian planes nearing British airspace:

September 19, 2014: Typhoons from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland shadow a pair of Tu-95 Bear bombers approaching a Nato defence zone in the North Sea. 

October 29, 2014: Two more bears are intercepted approaching the UK from the Norwegian sea as part of a large sortie of Russian planes including MiG fighters. 

A Russian bear bomber is escorted by an RAF fighter jet (file picture)

A Russian bear bomber is escorted by an RAF fighter jet (file picture)

October 31, 2014: Typhoons from Lossiemouth escort a lone bear away from UK airspace. 

January 28, 2015: Civilian flights are diverted away from Britain after bear bombers are spotted off the coast of Bournemouth and Portsmouth after passing the west coast of Ireland and flying around the English Channel. The Foreign Office questions the Russian Ambassador as to why the bombers were flying so close to commercial flights.

February 18, 2015: Two Typhoons from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire scrambled to intercept a pair of Bear bombers flying off Cornwall. They are escorted south.

April 13, 2015: Two Typhoons are sent from Lossiemouth after two bears are seen in international airspace near north Scotland, shortly after several Nato warships are gathered off the Scottish coast for training exercises. 

May 14, 2015: Two Typhoons were scrambled from Lossiemouth to intercept a pair of Tu-95 bombers flying towards UK airspace north of Scotland. But they did not enter the airspace and were not considered a threat.

September 11, 2015: Two Blackjack bombers are seen off the coast of Northumbria, prompting Typhoons to be scrambled from Lossiemouth. The UK jets closed in on the Russian planes which then flew off towards the Baltic Sea.

November 20, 2015: Blackjacks heading to a bombing raid in Syria on an unusual 8,000-mile round trip around Europe come close to entering UK airspace. Typhoons are sent from Lossiemouth to intercept and escort them away via the Atlantic Ocean and Gibraltar. 

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