The incident involving the flight of a Russian Su-24 bomber over the US destroyer Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea is reminiscent of deja vu. Exactly two years ago, a similar meeting between "Cook" and "Sushka" over the Black Sea made a lot of noise. According to media reports, in April 2014, the crew of this American warship was frightened by the electronic warfare equipment used by the Russian aircraft, which paralyzed the destroyer's on-board equipment - then 27 crew members filed a transfer report.

Two years after that incident, the defendants "relocated" to the Baltic Sea. Here, according to the American side, two Su-24 aircraft, presumably without ammunition, flew near the destroyer Donald Cook, which was conducting training sessions with the participation of a Polish Air Force helicopter. Russian bombers flew near an American ship for two days in a row, and also prevented a Polish helicopter from taking off. A Russian military helicopter Ka-27 was also seen nearby.

“We have deep concerns about unsafe and unprofessional Russian maneuvers.

These actions have the potential to escalate tensions between countries, ”the representatives are quoted as saying.

Hero of Russia, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR, Colonel Anatoly Kvochur also noted that all pilots must master this maneuver - flying at extremely low altitude. It is necessarily included in the combat training course for fighter-bomber aviation, as well as for tactical bombers, which is the Su-24.

“It is used for covert approach to the target. This is especially important when the terrain is rugged, and above the sea it can be seen from afar.

But at a good speed, and it was about 900 km / h, it is difficult to detect such an aircraft in advance - at low altitude it is a point, which then turns into a large, rather strong buzzing object, ”the source says.

As is known, Su-24 bomber - front-line bomber with variable sweep wing, designed for delivering missile and bomb strikes in simple and difficult weather conditions, day and night, including at low altitudes with targeted destruction of ground and surface targets. A variable-sweep wing is a type of fixed-wing heavier-than-air aircraft design that allows one of the types of wing geometry, the sweep, to be changed in flight. At high flight speeds, a larger sweep is more effective, and at low speeds (takeoff, landing) - a smaller one.

“Because they were flying with a straight wing – it’s a cruise and landing wing – obviously the speed was low,” Kvochur explains. —

If they folded the wing to the maximum sweep, then it would be possible to fly at a speed of 1300-1400 km / h, which would lead to a serious pop, because supersonic speed pulls the so-called shock wave and pulls such a wave. This wave can lead to the destruction of some weakly reinforced structures, such as antennas, and on the ground it can lead to the destruction of small buildings, ”the pilot clarifies.

He noted that, obviously, the commanders did not allow the wing to be folded so as not to aggravate the situation. “If these pilots made such a maneuver on their own initiative, based on patriotic and professional considerations, then this is the commander’s business, but I would encourage them for their professionalism,” says the Hero of Russia.

According to US military sources, Russian aircraft flew over the destroyer Donald Cook in neutral waters at an altitude of less than 30 m, about 10 m from it, which, in their opinion, was "unprofessional and unsafe."

“On Tuesday, a pair of Russian combat Su-24s, presumably unarmed, flew around the Cook 11 times. At one point, the Russian aircraft was 30 feet (9.14 m) away from the ship,” Pentagon spokesman Michelle Baldansa said in a statement.

Commenting on the statements of the American side about "unprofessional behavior", the honored pilot of Russia emphasized that everything was done cleanly, without rough edges.

“In general, flying over the sea at extremely low altitude is a rather serious matter, because it is difficult to determine the height. When you fly over the earth's surface, there are some irregularities, there is something for the eye to catch on, and so is the sea and the sea. This is a serious matter that requires professionalism,” he told Gazeta.Ru.

At the same time, he added that it is much easier to fly near the ship, which is a landmark, having its height. “It would be possible to fly in such a way that a wave would rise and the water would soar a little, it would wash the eyes of the Americans a little,” Kvochur joked.

Meanwhile, the American side, having studied the incident, used diplomatic channels to appeal to Russia. The U.S. Congressman in charge of naval affairs stated that "the activity of the US Navy in Europe must be expanded in such a way as to respond to the threat posed by Russia's international behavior." Although, as retired US Navy officer Rick told The Navy Times, the American destroyer did not open fire on Russian aircraft flying dangerously close to the ship, since they were not armed and did not pose a threat: “We are not at war with Russia,” Hoffman said, noting that people should not be killed just because “they are annoying.”

Recall that Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Donald Cook equipped with Aegis air defense system with anti-missiles, as well as Tomahawk cruise missiles. The decision to hit targets threatening the ship can be made automatically.

As Igor, the official representative of the Russian Ministry of Defense, said on Thursday, all flights of aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces are carried out in strict accordance with international rules for the use of airspace over neutral waters. “The flight path of the Russian aircraft passed through the area where the USS Donald Cook was located, about 70 km from the Russian naval base. Having found the ship in the zone of visual visibility, the Russian pilots turned away from it in compliance with all security measures,” Konashenkov said.

As Colonel Kvochur explained to Gazeta.Ru, as for the lapel, this is true, and once again emphasized the professionalism of the pilots when performing the maneuver. “They did not fly over the ship and its superstructures at such a speed that people got on deck there. They turned away, walked aside at a considerable distance. If they went supersonic, there would be cotton. But I hope that in the near foreseeable future it will not come to this in relations with American partners, ”he concluded.

Warsaw also expressed its opinion on the incident. The head of Poland said that, together with the United States, they would "consider a common response" to the incident, since "it was carried out mainly against a Polish helicopter." According to him, "this type of provocative behavior" has been observed "for some time now", and the question is "what is its purpose and why it was needed."

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Russian Su-24 bombers several times flew dangerously close to the American destroyer USS Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the US administration is aware of the Russian overflights and considers them "not in line with military behavior."

The Pentagon has released photos and videos showing Russian Su-24s "aggressively" flying at low altitude near the USS Donald Cook.

"The White House is aware of the incident. [...] This incident does not meet the professional standards of conduct for military forces operating in close proximity to each other in international water and airspace," Ernest said at a briefing in Washington.

Image copyright getty Image caption According to the US military, Russian Su-24s dangerously approached the destroyer Donald Cook for two days.

The Pentagon said in a statement that the actions of the Russian pilots were "dangerous, potentially provocative and could lead to a collision."

The captain of the American ship notes that the planes flew at a distance of less than 10 meters from the ship and conducted a "simulation of the attack." The bombers were reportedly unarmed.

The pilots of the aircraft did not respond to the radio messages of the destroyer's team - both in Russian and in English.

It is also reported that a Russian Ka-27 helicopter flew over the destroyer, from which, presumably, the ship was photographed.

Violation of the agreement

Such actions may violate an agreement made in the 1970s to prevent dangerous incidents on the high seas. It is not yet clear whether Washington will formally protest.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Russian aircraft behaved aggressively, although they were not armed

USS Donald Cook is the fourth generation destroyer of the US Navy, whose main weapon is guided missiles. According to incoming reports, a Polish helicopter was on board the ship.

The destroyer left the Polish port of Gdynia on Monday.

US Command Europe released a statement expressing "deep concern" about "unsafe and unprofessional Russian air maneuvers."

"These actions could unnecessarily increase tensions between countries and lead to a miscalculation or incident resulting in serious injury or death," the US military warns.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption The captain of the American ship says that the planes flew a few meters from the destroyer

Over the past few days, Russian Su-24 bombers have repeatedly flown dangerously close to the American destroyer USS Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea, according to the US military.

Many Incidents

Similar incidents between the military forces of Russia on the one hand, and the United States and its allies on the other, have increased dramatically over the past two years since Russia annexed Crimea, leading to a serious deterioration in relations between Moscow and the West.

Image copyright EPA Image caption Su-24s were not armed

Incidents take many forms - they are either violations of the airspace, or the passage of aircraft so close together that it is a possible collision in the air, or a close passage of warships, or a simulated attack.

The incidents took place in the airspace and sea waters of the Baltic States, in the Baltic Sea and even near Stockholm: the Swedish authorities were sure that a Russian submarine had penetrated their territorial waters in 2014.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption A Russian Ka-27 helicopter also flew over the destroyer.

Western experts and politicians believe that Moscow is flexing its muscles, showing that its opinion and its interests must be taken into account.

However, as BBC Washington correspondent Gary O'Donoghue says, many fear that this could lead - accidentally or deliberately - to a confrontation between the two nuclear powers.

The Americans accuse the Russians of being aggressive. The Pentagon video shows how the Russian plane behaves aggressively.

Russian warplanes flew threateningly over the USS Donald Cook several times in the Baltic Sea, news outlets reported citing US Department of Defense sources on April 13. Sources, who wished to remain anonymous, said that on April 12, a Su-24 attack aircraft flew at a height of ten meters above an American missile cruiser.

"This is the most aggressive behavior we've seen before," said a U.S. official who wished to remain anonymous. On Wednesday, the White House said it was "concerned" about the behavior of Russian military equipment.

Context

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Who shot down the Russian military plane?

Yeni Asya 30.11.2015 NATO Western Alliance is increasing the presence of its military equipment in Eastern Europe, especially in the Baltic States and Poland. Russia has long shown its outrage that NATO is pushing its spheres of influence to the borders with Russia. Relations between NATO and Russia became strained in 2014 when Russia seized the Crimean peninsula and began supporting pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine.

“We cannot regard what happened otherwise as a provocation, as another expression of aggressive intentions against the United States, NATO and Poland,” Polish Defense Minister Anthony Marikevich said in an interview with the RMF radio channel.

In the Russian media, the incident was not widely covered. The news was reported with reference to American sources.

The destroyer "Donald Cook" left Gdansk, Poland on Monday with a Polish helicopter on board, the Reuters news agency reported.

Events began to unfold on the same day, when the "Donald Cook" was in neutral waters at a distance of 70 nautical miles from Russian-owned Kaliningrad. Then, according to the information of the Americans, two Russian Su-24 aircraft flew over the warship 20 times at a height of only ten meters. On Tuesday, fighter jets flew over the destroyer 11 times, but even lower.

In addition, on April 12, a Russian Ka-27 helicopter took photographs of an American warship, flying around it several times. After that, the Su-24 flew over the American ship so low that "a wave rose on the sea," AFP said. According to the Americans, "it was not noticed that the Russian aviation was armed."

"The crew of the destroyer tried to contact them [the Russian pilots] via radio, but they didn't respond," a US military source told Reuters.

Igor Konashenkov, head of the press service department of the Ministry of Defense, said on his Facebook page on Thursday that Russian Su-24s were conducting training flights and, “having found the ship in the visual zone, the Russian pilots turned away from it in compliance with all security measures.”

“To be honest, the reason for such a painful reaction of our American colleagues is not clear,” Konashenkov wrote.

In his opinion, the principle that gives the right to American ships to move freely in neutral waters gives the right to Russian aircraft to fly freely in international airspace.

At the height of the Cold War, in 1972, the US and the USSR signed a bilateral treaty to prevent the emergence of dangerous situations between the armies of countries at sea. The treaty prohibited simulated attacks on aircraft and ships similar to those we have recently observed, the performance of air maneuvers over ships or the dropping of hazardous objects near them. The treaty is still in effect.

“Donald Cook is part of the US missile defense system. When such a warship passes near Russian territorial waters, it attracts the attention of Russia, and it begins to show its presence. Russia is making it clear that it particularly dislikes having such a ship nearby,” says Capt. Juha Kukkola of the National Defense University of Finland.

NATO and Russia have been arguing for a long time about the NATO missile defense system, which the military alliance is going to deploy in Poland in 2018. Russia strongly opposes such an intention and believes that the NATO system is contrary to Russia's defense goals.

Kukkola recalls that the events of the beginning of this week were not particularly exceptional for relations between NATO and Russia over the past two years. After the capture of Crimea and the outbreak of war in eastern Ukraine, such threats are observed, in particular, in the Black Sea.

Have Russian fighter jets created a truly dangerous situation, as the US claims?

Captain Kukkola says the level of risk is related to various factors. One of them is the existing political relations between countries. Using such a destroyer, the country's leadership expresses its opinion "in accordance with the political situation."

“On the other hand, the level of risk is also affected by the level of professionalism of the crew of Russian, and especially American ships,” says Kukkola.

Professionalism reduces the risk of misinterpretations and fateful decisions made in a panic. A professional can understand in many details what the other side is doing. It is obvious that Russia wanted to make clear its protest through its maneuvers, but did not want to create a dangerous situation in the Baltic Sea.

“The Russians did not pursue the goal of provoking the Americans to shoot down the plane,” Kukkola says.

A demonstrative and quickly dispersed expression of one's opinion in the press was sufficient for Moscow.

There won’t be enough self-propelled guns even for cities))) “... Since 1945, the United States has produced 66.5 thousand atomic bombs and nuclear warheads. Suppose that they fucked up with disarmament and they all exist. This is a clear exaggeration, since half of them degrade for physical reasons "Well, fuck it. The average yield is 100 kilotons. This is a convincing destruction of a square kilometer and a litter of a hundred (10x10), which is also, in general, an exaggeration. However, I consider it to the maximum, for a start.
Further. There are 14 nuclear power plants in Russia, although there are much more power units, but it does not matter. Each nuclear power plant will fail in an unfavorable scenario, a square of 100 x 100 kilometers, that's 10 thousand.
Bombs without nuclear power plants - 100 sq. km * 66,000 = 6.6 million square kilometers.
Hits on nuclear power plants - 10,000 sq. km * 14 = 144 thousand. Nothing at all.

As a result, two-thirds of Russia will be completely free from radiation. And they definitely won’t bomb on collective farms, so there are no problems with grub.

And now we will cut the sturgeon.

As of October 1, 2016, the US strategic nuclear forces have 1,367 nuclear warheads on 681 deployed strategic launchers, 848 deployed and non-deployed launchers. The total is about two thousand. most of the 848 are tactics that, with all the will, cannot be applied on Russian territory.

Remains a million and a half square kilometers.

At least half will be shot down. All this shit will rain down on Europe, but I already attributed myself at the beginning of the script to collateral damage.

It remains 500-700 thousand.

Further, the declared 100 kilometers is ten times overestimated for an average ammunition of one hundred kilotons. In fact, there will be a square kilometer at the epicenter and a square of 3x3 kilometers, where it is better to wait ten years with agriculture.

It remains 50-70 thousand.

The blows will be massive, i.e. a dozen warheads will fly to some places, and not a single one to some. There is no need to talk about uniform distribution. Here I do not undertake forecasts - but is it possible to seriously think that if 50 thousand square kilometers out of 18 million are destroyed, universal Hell and Israel will come? For some reason I'm not sure about that.

Yes, Moscow, Leningrad, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Kyiv and Zhitomir ecetera will be razed to the ground. But is this the end?

These were theoretical calculations. But the specifics - what the Pindos actually have.

1. Actually the Strategic Missile Forces - reduced to three positional areas of Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota. Former bases in California, Kansas, Arkansas, Arizona, South Dakota, Missouri lost their status.

2. Air Force - B-52s are consolidated into two wings, Louisiana and North Dakota; B-1B in 1995 was withdrawn from the number of carriers of nuclear weapons; B-2 is one wing in Missouri. Basing outside the mainland is not provided.

3. Fleet - The surface is deprived of nuclear weapons with the withdrawal of the CD from the composition, the submarine is based on two (one per shore) - Bangor and Kings Bay bases. Guam, Pearl Harbor, Rota, Charleston, Holy Lough have lost their home status.

4. There are some bombs in Europe - Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany. The F-16 and F-15 were assigned as carriers, which, due to their combat characteristics, cannot be offensive weapons. The only intelligible function in such a duet is a defensive use (alas, in Eastern Europe) in the event of an enemy attack.

All this wealth cannot be taken for an offensive configuration. There can be no explosive deployment, logistics in the US Armed Forces is an honorary department, and not an ensign in a warehouse and miraculous heroes under hatches ready to attack without pipifax.

It is naive to think that in such a configuration they are capable of winning a nuclear war. Yes, yes, I heard a thousand times that everyone will lose it, because mutants and nuclear winter. But with this insignificant arsenal, is it possible to bomb Russia - not to mention the whole world - into the Stone Age?

At this point, let me remind you that by 1942 the USSR had lost about 10 percent of its territory. And not in the form of radioactive stains, but as a result of the occupation. However, the connection of the remaining part was not broken, and the leadership remained in the hands of the then government. Putin, of course, is not Stalin, but his vertical is enough to ensure that even Cruz's quite optimistic scenario remains only a fantasy.

PS. The most illustrative example of the area after nuclear strikes is the test site on Novaya Zemlya, where many nuclear explosions were carried out in a fairly short period of time, including ground-based and of huge power. As a result, the zones of long-term contamination of the area with isotopes with a long half-life occupied no more than six square kilometers, in the region of four ground explosions. Throughout the rest of the test site, even at the height of the testing period, the radiation background was within the acceptable range. The plume stretched for thousands of kilometers, but as a result of this, the concentration of radioactive fallout was so low that the background also did not exceed the permissible level in the places where they fell.
...
ernobyl? Chernobyl released thousands of times more radioactive shit than any nuclear explosion. In an explosion, much less material is used, and it simply burns out. During the accident at the nuclear power plant, in fact, “the lid was torn off the pan” and the contents were mechanically scattered. That is, the Chernobyl zone or the same Fukushima cannot serve as a model of a nuclear war, they are models of a reactor accident and nothing more.

But she completely refutes another myth - about mutants. The most common animals live on the territory of the zone, and in general, due to the closeness, there is a full flowering of flora and fauna. Mutations in the vast majority of cases lead to the death of the mutant, this is a deformity, not an improvement. Those very first eyeless fish in Pripyat died out in the first year, no one else saw them.

Eternal nuclear winter? It also doesn't work. The accumulation of carbon dioxide and soot emissions will lead to warming after a not too long cold period. The climate will become wetter, a little warmer than before, that's all. So the post-nuclear world will be just a destroyed world, nothing more. © OneGoodPerson

The US State Department admitted that the crew of the American destroyer "Donald Cook" was demoralized after meeting with the Russian Su-24 bomber, which did not have bombs and missiles on board. We learned why this happened and what else Russia has inspiring.

On an unnamed frequency

On April 10, the American destroyer "Donald Cook" entered the Black Sea. On April 12, a Russian Su-24 bomber overflew the destroyer. On April 14, after an ordinary, in general, incident - our planes do not very regularly approach the ships of a potential enemy in neutral waters - the Pentagon made an extremely emotional statement, accusing Russia of violating its own traditions and international treaties. It was mentioned that the crew of the "Donald Cook" was demoralized after the meeting with the bomber, a number of media reported that 27 American sailors had written reports about their dismissal from the fleet. What scared the crew of the destroyer so much?

"Donald Cook" is not a rusty submarine "Zaporozhye" for you, but a fourth-generation destroyer of the US Navy, whose main weapon is guided missiles. This is the most massive post-war ship with a displacement of more than 5,000 tons: 62 have been built since 1988, and 13 more are planned. In the normal and strike versions, the destroyer is equipped with 56 or 96 such missiles, respectively.

The 380 people who make up the crew of the ship are well protected. The combat posts of the "Donald Cook" are surrounded by Kevlar - 130 tons of this expensive but durable material goes to each ship. The small superstructure is covered with a material that absorbs radar radiation. Below the waterline, the destroyer is protected by armor made of high-strength magnesium-aluminum alloys. To reduce underwater noise, air is supplied to the edges of the propellers. As a result, a cloud of bubbles is formed, which distorts and smoothes the hydroacoustic "portrait" of the ship.

Finally, the Donald Cook is equipped with the latest Aegis combat information and control system - among other things, it combines the air defense systems of all ships on which it is installed into a common network, allowing you to simultaneously track and fire hundreds of targets. On the edges of the destroyer's superstructure are four huge universal radar antennas, replacing several conventional radars. Together with "Tomahawks" in universal launchers on the bow and on the stern, fifty anti-aircraft guided missiles of various classes are waiting in the wings.

It would seem that the appearance of such a ship in the Black Sea should cause shock and awe. And so it happened, just not from the other side. The Russian Su-24 front-line bomber that flew to Donald Cook did not have bombs or missiles on board. Under the fuselage hung one container with the Khibiny electronic warfare system. Having approached the destroyer, the Khibiny turned off its radar, combat control circuits, data transmission systems - in short, they turned off the entire Aegis, just like we turn off the TV by pressing a button on the remote control. After that, the Su-24 simulated a missile attack on the blinded and deafened ship. Then another and another - a total of 12 times.

When the bomber had left, the "Donald Cook" hurried to the Romanian port to put her nerves in order. He no longer approached Russian waters. The Americans are accustomed from afar, being in complete safety, to grind with missiles poorly armed detachments of some desert partisans. And if that doesn't work, they don't play.

Soldiers of the invisible front

The more complex the electronic system, the easier it is to disrupt its operation by methods and means of electronic warfare. - said the head of the research center for electronic warfare and evaluating the effectiveness of reducing the visibility of the air force academy Vladimir Balybin. - To win in modern warfare, it is not enough to achieve air supremacy. It is also necessary to ensure information superiority.

In addition to the Khibiny, the domestic military-industrial complex produces many different devices that can discourage both regular enemy units and bandits with terrorists. The Airborne Forces began to receive Infauna complexes. Installed on an armored personnel carrier or other military equipment, the complex finds and jams enemy radio communications in the HF and VHF bands, and "lulls" remotely controlled land mines. They will certainly explode - but after the Russian military column passes over them and retires to a safe distance.

The "Infauna" has one more function - optical sensors placed on the sides of the vehicle detect flashes of shots and give the command to set up a smoke screen that shelters the column from fire. The Judoist information security complex, among other things, finds and neutralizes electronic devices that have connected to data transmission channels without authorization.

The product "Lesochek" performs the same functions as the "Infauna", but is much more compact - it can be carried in a backpack or suitcase. With such a case, it is convenient to go to important business negotiations - the most advanced security service will not be able to eavesdrop on them. For businessmen, there is a civilian version of "Lesochka" - it can be mounted in the trunk of a Mercedes.

If in the UAZ of General Romanov in 1995 in Grozny the product "Lesochek" worked, the explosion of the car of the commander of the internal troops might not have happened, - Balybin said.

The Borisoglebsk-2 complex forms the basis of the electronic protection of tactical formations of the Russian army. It includes an automated control point and four types of jamming stations - in a single algorithm, they find sources of enemy activity on the air and jam them.

The Zhitel device finds and blocks satellite and cell phones, GPS-navigation subscriber complexes. It proved its effectiveness during the conflict in South Ossetia, disorienting Georgian drones. In Chechnya, the head of the electronic warfare department of the Voronezh Air Force Academy, Vladimir Khrolikov, fought terrorists:

We had tracking stations all over the territory. As soon as there was activity on the air, we made a notch and passed it on to the gunners. Dzhokhar Dudayev, as you know, was destroyed by a missile aimed at the signal of his satellite phone. In Grozny, EW specialists neutralized radio-controlled land mines rolled into asphalt.

The re-equipment of Russia's strategic nuclear forces with the latest electronic warfare equipment is proceeding at an accelerated pace, said Dmitry Rogozin, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia. If the army and navy as a whole are re-equipped by 70 percent by 2020, then the strategic potential EW will be updated to 100 percent.

Electronic warfare equipment is what allows our smart weapons to operate, and someone else's smart weapons to fall asleep. And that's right, - said the vice-premier.