U.S. military diverts aircrafts to dodge Russian fightersOctober 8, 2015 - 16:13 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The U.S. military diverted two aircraft over Syria to ensure they could maintain a safe flying distance from a Russian fighter aircraft in the same area, according to Captain Jeff Davis, Pentagon spokesman, CNN News reports. It was the first time the U.S. needed to do so since Russia began military operations in Syria at the end of last month. The two planes were F-16s that had departed from Turkey's Incirlik air base and were on their way to a location near the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa, a senior defense official told CNN. The U.S. aircraft that diverted were not able to complete their mission, the official said. Since the Russians began operating in Syrian airspace, U.S. pilots have been under orders to change their flight path if there is a Russian plane within 20 nautical miles, according to the official. Davis said the incident happened in the last few days but offered few additional details. "We are taking action to ensure" the planes don't come too close to each other, he said, indicating there had only been one incident so far. There is no sign the two aircraft communicated with each other. In the recent incident, the Russian plane came within the 20 nautical mile interval. The new U.S. rules were instituted specifically because there is no agreement with the Russians yet on maintaining mutual flight safety rules and practices. In fact, the incident happened in the days after the first round of technical talks with Russia on that issue. Without that agreement, the official said, U.S. pilots cannot count on the Russians to fly under standard safety procedures. The official emphasized the reason for the new rules is concern about keeping American pilots safe, given the long history of aggressive Russian military intercepts against U.S. aircraft. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Armenian delegation participating in NATO PA session The delegation is headed by Andranik Kocharyan, the chairman of the standing committee on defense and security matters. Schengen visa cost won’t change for Armenia – diplomat The increase in the cost of a Schengen visa will not apply to citizens of Armenia, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said. Yeremyan Projects opens state-of-the-art dairy production plant Yeremyan Projects officially launched the Yeremyan Products state-of-the-art milk processing plant in Yerevan on May 24. Armenian PM’s helicopter makes emergency landing in Vanadzor The helicopter transporting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made an emergency landing in Vanadzor. |