MOSCOW. March 23 (Interfax) - Crews of Su-27 fighters have performed their missions on escorting Tupolev Tu-95MS strategic bombers over the Barents Sea and practiced the interception of aerial targets during an ongoing inspection of the Northern Fleet and certain units of the Western Military District and the Airborne Forces.
A flight of interceptors received the coordinates of the long-range bombers they had to escort and the planes of a simulated enemy approaching them after taking off from the Besovets airfield in Karelia, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on Friday.
Each fighter element had to approach the Tu-95MS as close as several meters to mislead the simulated enemy's air defense systems and then intercept the simulated enemy's planes.
According to earlier reports, 38,000 servicemen, 3,360 units of military hardware, 41 ships, 15 submarines, as well as 110 airplanes and helicopters are taking part in surprise combat readiness drills of the Northern Fleet, units of the Western Military District and the Airborne Troops.
The training exercises are expected to continue until March 21.