MOSCOW, January 29 (Sputnik) — Two alleged Russian bombers were seen flying over British airspace on its southern coast, leading the Royal Air Force (RAF) to dispatch two jets in response, the Daily Mail reported on Thursday.
"Flying any military aircraft in or close to the sovereign airspace of another country signals displeasure or at worst aggression," defense watchdog Royal United Services Institute spokeswoman Elizabeth Quintana was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
According to her, the bombers did not violate British airspace, but did diverge from their standard route.
“This case is very unusual. Normally Russian Bears [NATO reporting name of the Tu-95 strategic bomber] come past Norway and down the North Sea. It could have been used to probe the RAF speed of reaction south,” Quintana said.
The spokeswoman added that the RAF's two multipurpose Typhoon aircraft escorted the alleged Russian bombers until they left the "UK area of interest."
