Venezuela’s Su-30 has intercepted an EP-3 Aries II spy plane of the US Navy causing a discontent among the US military.
On July 21, the U.S. Southern Command released a statement claiming that the EP-3 Aries II was approached in an “unprofessional manner” by a Venezuelan SU-30 Flanker-C fighter aircraft in “approved international airspace” on July 19.
“After reviewing video documentation, we have determined the Russian-made fighter aggressively shadowed the EP-3 at an unsafe distance in international airspace for a prolonged period of time, endangering the safety of the crew and jeopardizing the EP-3 mission,” the statement said.
The U.S. military said that it “was performing a multi-nationally recognized & approved mission in international airspace over #CaribbeanSea”.
According to the US side, the Venezuelan warplane “took off from an airfield 200 miles east of Caracas.” The statement didn’t provide additional details on how long the intercept lasted.
1 of 2 JUST RELEASED #Venezuela SU-30 Flanker “aggressively shadowed” a U.S. EP-3 aircraft at an unsafe distance July 19, jeopardizing the crew & aircraft. The EP-3 was performing a multi-nationally recognized & approved mission in international airspace over #CaribbeanSea. pic.twitter.com/edjmPqXbmP
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) July 21, 2019
