Incident involving a Russian Su-24 bomber overflying American destroyer Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea, 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 her, 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 earth's surface, there are some irregularities, there is something for the eye to catch on, and so 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 steam up 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 fleet 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 destroyer USS Donald Cook class Arleigh Burke equipped with a system air defense Aegis with anti-missiles, as well as Tomahawk cruise missiles. The decision to hit targets threatening the ship can be made automatically.

As stated on Thursday official representative Ministry of Defense of Russia Igor, 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, Russian pilots made a lapel from him 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."

American sailors filmed their "honorary escort" - Russian Su-24 bombers, which.

As the Wall Street Journal wrote the day before, such incidents were noted this week in the Baltic Sea. The Russian planes were not armed with missiles, but the US military considered their maneuvers "unsafe and potentially provocative."

One of the episodes happened when a Polish helicopter was supposed to take off from the deck of an American ship. However, due to the Su-24, the takeoff had to be postponed.

In one of the moments filmed on the video, the Su-24s come in from the direction of the sun and pass over the American destroyer at ultra-low altitudes.

The crew of the ship "enjoyed" the air show to the fullest, not forgetting to take photos and videos, posting them on Flikr and Youtube.

Photos taken by the US military are provided on the Navy.mil portal.

Recall that in April 2014, the media reported that the USS Donald Cook had already been subjected to “attacks” by Russian aircraft in the Black Sea. It was reported that the Su-24 bomber made several maneuvers in the vicinity of the American warship. The pilot did not respond to requests, but silently flew in unacceptable proximity to the destroyer at an altitude of 600 meters.

URO destroyer (with guided missile weapons) USS Donald Cook is of the Arleigh Burke class and is assigned to the 22nd Squadron of the US Navy. The place of his permanent deployment is the military base "Rota" in Spain. The ship's main weapons are cruise missiles"Tomahawk" (from 56 to 96 units) with a range of up to 2500 kilometers, capable of carrying nuclear charges. The destroyer is also equipped launchers anti-ship missiles "Harpoon", anti-submarine, mine-torpedo weapons, 127-mm artillery mount, anti-aircraft guided missiles and six-barreled guns.

The ship is equipped with a modern Aegis combat information and control system. The system allows you to receive and process information from sensors of other ships and aircraft connections and issue target designations to their launchers.

Russian Su-24 bombers several times flew dangerously close to the American destroyer USS Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea. The Pentagon said in a statement that the actions of the Russian pilots were "dangerous, potentially provocative and could lead to a collision," the Actual Camera (ETV+) morning TV news broadcast.

The commander of the American destroyer 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, neither in Russian nor in English.

The White House condemned the overflights of Russian Su-24s over the US Navy destroyer. Video of the incident and details below...

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said that the US administration is aware of the overflights of Russian fighters dangerously close to the US destroyer Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea and considers them "not in line with military behavior."

And the Pentagon has released photographs and videos that US military officials say show 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 in any way correspond to 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.

Following this, the US European Command issued 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 warned.

Earlier, the actions of Russian pilots in an interview with reporters were criticized by Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren. Warren called them "provocative and unprofessional".

An anonymous Reuters military source described the incident in detail, saying Russian fighter jets "feigned an attack" on a US destroyer.

According to him, we are talking about "one of the most aggressive acts in recent times."

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

As noted, they were not armed.

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

USS Donald Cook - destroyer The fourth generation US Navy, whose main weapons are guided missiles. On board the ship was a Polish helicopter.

The destroyer was reportedly heading for the Polish port of Gdansk.

The US military recognized that bureaucracy undermines the country's defense capability. The expert is sure that a potential adversary cannot keep up with the development of the RF Armed Forces.

Speaking to the US Congressional Armed Services Committee, Sr. Researcher Center for a New American Security Paul Sharre told the senators the disappointing news: America is not ready for a potential military conflict with its opponents. According to the speaker, Russia is ahead of the United States in the field of electronic warfare (EW), medium and long-range missiles, as well as air defense.

Sharre acknowledged that american army can no longer ensure the former military presence in the western part Pacific Ocean and faces similar problems in Europe. The reason for the fading potential of the US Armed Forces, according to the military, is strategic miscalculations in planning. Due to excessive bureaucracy in the system of distribution of defense spending, the modernization of new types of weapons can take decades.

Head of the Department of Political Science and Sociology of the PRUE G.V. Plekhanova, military expert Andrey Koshkin in the comment IA "Politics Today" noted that for last years Russia has become a leader in electronic warfare, having singled out this area as one of the priorities.

The political scientist recalled the incident with the American destroyer "Donald Cook" in the Black Sea. In the spring of 2014, the team was frightened by a Russian Su-24 bomber, using the Khibiny electronic warfare system against an intruder maneuvering off the coast of Crimea. The effect was worse than from the refreshing mountain air. Cook's radars were blinded, and 27 American sailors, upon arrival at the port, wrote a letter of resignation, disappointed in the capabilities of their destroyer.

Koshkin gives another example of efficiency Russian funds EW:

“A swarm of drones attacked our Syrian base in Khmeinim. We destroyed all the drones, and we managed to reprogram six of them, intercepting the signal. Drones landed, however, three of them exploded on contact with the ground. But the remaining three we were able to explore. There were other cases when it was possible not only to prevent the enemy's impact with the help of electronic warfare, but also to intercept weapons, and then use them for their own purposes. Here we feel confident and continue to improve electronic warfare devices,” says Koshkin.

The incident mentioned by the expert took place on the night of January 6, 2018 at the Khmeinim base of the Russian Aerospace Forces and the base of the Russian Navy in Tartus. At once, 13 multicopters tried to drop improvised mines on Russian military facilities, however, according to the Ministry of Defense, the security system violated the terrorists' plans.

Commenting on American concerns about opportunities Russian missiles medium and short range, Koshkin suggested that the United States is aware of the low effectiveness of its own intercontinental ballistic missiles LGM-30.

“They now want to put more advanced ballistic missiles. This is discussed in the review of US nuclear policy. During the campaign, Trump spoke about the need to improve the nuclear triad, as it lags behind modern requirements reached by other states. We are making progress in this regard. We are constantly improving our nuclear shield, as we are forced to respond to aggression emanating from the United States and NATO,” the political scientist said.

Apart from electronic warfare systems Russia has at its disposal powerful anti-aircraft and missile defense to resist any aggressor. One of the latest developments of the Russian defense concern Almaz-Antey is an anti-aircraft rocket system Prometheus can destroy not only aircraft, but also hypersonic and cruise intercontinental ballistic missiles. American bloggers modeled a likely US Air Force collision with the Prometheus and came to the conclusion that NATO's fifth-generation F35 and F22 fighters have no chance.

“RIP F-22,” netizens stated.