American and Canadian warplanes intercepted two Russian and two Chinese bombers in international airspace near Alaska on Wednesday, according to the joint US-Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

NORAD reported detecting, tracking, and intercepting two Russian TU-95 and two Chinese H-6 military aircraft operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone.

This zone is an area where air traffic is monitored beyond national airspace borders to provide extra reaction time for potential threats.

Intercepts of Russian aircraft in this region are common, involving visual or electronic contact by US or Canadian planes, Barron’s has reported.

NORAD confirmed that fighter jets from both the United States and Canada conducted the intercept, noting that the bombers remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace.

NORAD emphasized that the bombers’ activity is not considered a threat.

Written by B.C. Begley