Russian Bombers Were Not Alone Over Japan on Feb 8

More on the 2 Russian bombers over Japan from The Voice of Russia (2/9/2012):

Russian "bears" fly over Pacific

Two Russian long-distance aircraft of the TU-95MS class have carried out a routine patrol mission over a neutral area of the Pacific Ocean, a Defense Ministry spokesman has told reporters.

At various stages, the “bear” bombers were accompanied by Su-27 jet fighters and A-50 reconnaissance planes. All the flights were in strict compliance with international regulations on the use of airspace over neutral waters, the spokesman said. Earlier, the Japanese media rang the bell over 5 Russian warplanes spotted near Japan’s border.

(IF)

There was absolutely no mention of jet fighters and reconnaissance planes in Japanese news. I wonder how many Japanese jet fighters they "escorted" this time. (In December 2010, the Russian long-range bombers "escorted" 10 Japanese jet fighters.)

(H/T anon reader)

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