The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) scrambled fighters to intercept a Russian Su-24 Fencer ground attack aircraft over the Sea of Japan Wednesday, Tokyo announced shortly after the event. It was the second time in a week Japan rushed to meet foreign planes. Meanwhile, Japan has moved to massively expand its air fleet.
The Su-24 was on air patrol over international waters when the incident occurred.
The Russian jet didn't violate Japanese airspace, The Diplomat noted, citing the Japanese Defense Ministry. In lieu of an offensive air force, which is banned by its constitution, the JASDF concentrates on air defense and detection operations.
Manufactured by Sukhoi, the Su-24 was first introduced by the Soviet Union in 1974. It is a fast, variable geometry jet that can reach Mach 1.6 at a full sprint and is capable of carrying nuclear weapons, although the jets are used to fit a variety of combat and reconnaissance roles.
While this was the first time in five weeks the JASDF has rushed to confront a Russian plane (the last time was to meet a large Ilyushin Il-38 “Dolphin” anti-ship/anti-submarine warfare plane), only five days earlier, the self-defense force scrambled when it detected a Chinese spy plane in the vicinity of Okinawa, far to the south, in the East China Sea, The Diplomat noted.
On December 14, the JASDF intercepted a Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy Air Force (PLANAF) Shaanxi…
