Russian Fighter Buzzes American Recon Plane Over Black Sea

A Russian fighter jet buzzed an Air Force reconnaissance plane – coming within 15 feet of the American aircraft in an "unsafe" incident over the Black Sea, reports say.

"On January 25, 2016, a U.S. RC-135U flying a routine route in international airspace over the Black Sea was intercepted by a Russian Su-27 in an unsafe and unprofessional manner. We are looking into this particular incident," Army Lt. Col. Michelle Baldanza, a Defense Department spokesperson, said in a statement, ABC News reports. 

Another military official tells CNN the Russian jet flew along the right side the U.S. plane, then turned away in a maneuver that adversely impacted the "controllability of the U.S. aircraft." 

The unnamed official didn't know if the Russian jet was armed at the time.

The incident occurred more than 40 miles from the Russian coast, CNN reports.

"Aircraft intercepts are not unusual, but are normally routine events. In this case the intercept was not routine, and the Russian pilot acted in an unprofessional manner that put both the American flight crew and himself at risk," Baldanza said, ABC News reports. "We have addressed our concerns on this matter appropriately."

The incident is similar to one between the same two types of U.S. and Russian aircraft in 2014, when a Russian Su-27 flew within 100 feet of the nose of the U.S. Air Force RC-135U over the Sea of Okhotsk between Russia and Japan. 

At the time, a Defense Department official called it "one of the most dangerous close passes in decades" and said the Russian jet "put the lives of the U.S. crew in jeopardy," CNN reports.

The Russian aircraft even turned and "showed its belly" to the U.S. crew so they could see it was armed with missiles, CNN reports of the 2014 incident.

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