U.S. fighter jets tracked a Russian reconnaissance plane near Alaska on Tuesday (August 26), marking the fourth such incident in less than a week. According to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the Russian IL-20 COOT, a Cold War-era aircraft, was detected in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). This area of international airspace requires aircraft identification for national security purposes.
In response to the latest detection, NORAD scrambled an E-3 Sentry, two F-16s, and a KC-135 tanker to monitor the Russian plane. The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter U.S. or Canadian sovereign airspace. NORAD noted that such Russian activity in the Alaskan ADIZ is regular and not considered a threat.
The recent surge in Russian flights began on August 20, with similar incidents occurring on August 21 and August 24. Prior to this, the last reported intercept of a Russian military aircraft in the area was a month ago. Business Insider highlighted that the IL-20M, identified by NATO as "Coot-A," is a Soviet-era surveillance plane with fewer than 20 still in active service.
NORAD employs a layered defense network, including satellites, radars, and fighter aircraft, to detect and track foreign planes. The command remains ready to respond to any threats against North America. While these incidents are not seen as threats, they underscore ongoing military activity in the region, including increased Russian and Chinese naval presence near Alaska.