Japan warns off Russian military plane, uses flares for first time

Japan scrambled fighter jets and used flares to warn off a Russian military plane that breached Japanese airspace on Sept. 23, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said.

The airspace violation could be related to the joint military exercises Russia and China planned to participate in during September.

A Russian Il-38 reconnaissance aircraft entered Japanese airspace over Rebun Island, off Japan's northern coast, Kihara told reporters. The plane breached Japan's airspace three times, for up to a minute in each instance, over the course of a five-hour flight in the region.

In response, Japan scrambled F-15 and F-35 fighter jets, which used flares after the Russian plane ignored earlier warnings.

The incident marks the first time Japanese aircraft used flares to warn off a Russian military plane.

"The airspace violation was extremely regrettable," Kihara said. He also said Japan has lodged a protest with Moscow via diplomatic channels.

"We will carry out our warning and surveillance operations as we pay close attention to their military activities," Kihara said.

The Russian plane was not engaged in particularly dangerous activities at the time it entered Japanese airspace, he said.

Earlier in September, Russian Il-38 and other military aircraft were detected and tracked in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in North America, though the planes stopped short of violating U.S. or Canadian airspace.

In July 2024, the U.S. and Canada scrambled fighter jets to intercept Russian and Chinese military planes in the ADIZ.

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