US B-52 Bomber Made Unexpected Approach Of Russian Airbase In Syria

Via AlmasdarNews.com,

A U.S. B-52 bomber was spotted in the eastern Mediterranean this past week, as the aircraft itself was flying with an F-16 escort provided by the Greek Air Force.

According to the Russian aviation publication Avia.Pro, the U.S. B-52 bomber made an unexpected approach to the Russian Hmeimim (or also Khmeimim) Airbase in western Syria, which caught their forces in the region off guard.

“A few hours ago, initially over the southern part of Greece, and subsequently already close to Cyprus, the American strategic bomber B-52 was tracked, which was a rather big surprise due to its approach the Russian Hmeimim Airbase. The exact route of the U.S. strategic bomber remains unknown; however, according to a number of sources, the plane flew close to the border of Syria before heading into Jordanian airspace,” the publication reported Friday.

For what purpose the American strategic B-52 bomber appeared so near Russian military bases in Syria so far remains unknown, however, these aircraft were previously seen in imitation of attacks on Russian military bases located in the region, in connection with which analysts believe that this is another attempt to scare Russia with an American presence.

U.S. Air Force B-52 spotted near Russian military base in Syriahttps://t.co/AqvxmpeDET pic.twitter.com/LFqWgv3UE8

— Defence blog (@Defence_blog) November 3, 2019

“It is noteworthy to mention that previously unconfirmed information appeared that the Russian Hmeimim Airbase is no longer under the protection of the S-400 air defense system,” they added.

Some rumors began to surface last week about the Russian military’s alleged deactivation of their S-400 system in Syria.

There have been unconfirmed claims that the Russian military deactivated its S-400 anti-air defense missile system protecting Russian bases in Syria. 

If true, this may have been one of the reasons the U.S. made the close approach; however, these flights are rarely discussed by either the U.S. or Russia.