NORAD Jets Train To Catch Russian and Chinese Bombers Over Alaska: Video

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has released footage of fighter jets honing their skills at intercepting Russian and Chinese bombers over Alaska.

Newsweek has emailed both the Russian and Chinese defense ministries for comment.

Why It Matters

NORAD is a combined American and Canadian military command that provides aerospace warning, aerospace control and maritime warning for North America, including the detection, validation and warning of attack by aircraft, missiles or space vehicles.

Russia has regularly sent military aircraft near Alaska. Although they have remained outside U.S. and Canadian sovereign airspace, they have entered both nations' air defense identification zones (ADIZs), international airspace that requires the identification of all aircraft.

Last summer, NORAD detected Chinese strategic bombers within the Alaskan ADIZ for the first time as they conducted a joint air strategic patrol with Russian counterparts.

What To Know

American and Canadian aircraft conducted intercepts of a U.S. Air Force B-1B bomber over Alaska, the Alaskan NORAD Region and Alaskan Command announced on Monday, demonstrating U.S. and Canadian readiness to defend North America and respond to global security challenges.

Black-and-white footage shows an F-16 fighter jet flying alongside a B-1B bomber.

The exercise was held on March 5, according to the Royal Canadian Air Force, and involved Canadian CF-18 and U.S. F-16 fighter jets. The intercepted bomber was transiting from the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command's area of responsibility, NORAD said.

Four B-1B bombers were sent to Guam, the westernmost U.S. territory in the Western Pacific Ocean, for a Bomber Task Force mission in January. It was not clear whether the bomber that took part in the NORAD exercise was returning to its home base in South Dakota.

According to NORAD, the exercise was part of an operation known as Noble Defender, showcasing how it can launch aircraft at a moment's notice from dispersed locations and defend North America "from any and all approaches."

The last time NORAD detected Russian military aircraft within the Alaskan ADIZ was February 19. It said this Russian activity "occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat."

NORAD has built a layered defense network, consisting of satellites, radars and fighter jets, to detect and track aircraft and inform appropriate actions. The command said it is ready to employ a number of response options in defense of North America.

What People Are Saying

The North American Aerospace Defense Command said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday: "This iteration of Operation Noble Defender demonstrates that NORAD is ready, postured, and well prepared to link with other Combatant Commands to deter threats and defend our shared interests."

The U.S. Defense Department wrote in its latest assessment report on Chinese military power: "In 2024, both nations [China and Russia] conducted several combined operations including bomber, naval, and coast guard patrols that entered the Arctic region, with the first combined bomber patrol entering the Alaskan ADIZ."

What Happens Next

It remains to be seen when Russia and China, which have formed a quasi-alliance, will hold another joint patrol with their bombers. A total of nine such missions have been conducted since 2019, with the last one organized in the Western Pacific Ocean last November.