The British Ministry of Defence has accused two Russian planes of an “unsafe” interception of a British plane over the Black Sea.

The British plane was flying over NATO territory in international airspace.

The incident came just days after the British Defence Secretary accused Russia of spying in the North Atlantic.

It was an extremely stressful incident, but the crew  “remained calm  .” On Wednesday, May 20, the British Ministry of Defence confirmed that  a  Royal Air Force reconnaissance  aircraft was “dangerously intercepted”  by Russian fighter jets. As reported by  Sud-Ouest  , the incident occurred over  the Black Sea  last month. British Defence Minister John Healey condemned the behavior as  “dangerous and unacceptable  ,” posing  a “serious risk of accident and escalation.”

A Russian Su-35  was reportedly approaching  the British Rivet Joint aircraft   . The Su-35 came close enough to  activate the aircraft’s emergency systems, including disengaging the autopilot  . The second Russian fighter,  a Su-27  , was reported to have made  six passes ahead of the British aircraft, approaching to within about six meters of its nose,  which is unusually close considering the aircraft’s speed.  The British  aircraft was unarmed and was conducting a routine flight in international airspace as part of  NATO operations  to secure its eastern flank.

Accusations of Russian espionage

The British Ministry of Defence praised the crew’s response, noting that  they “remained calm”  and completed their mission despite the incident. It also explained the context of the incident. Just days earlier, Minister Healey condemned  Russian spying on cables in the North Atlantic, claiming that  three Russian submarines were involved. So, was this a Russian threat or an isolated incident? The Kremlin has yet to offer an explanation.