US admits Russians photographed carrier

Russian officials said the Kitty Hawk was taken by surprise

Russian fighters flew directly over a US aircraft carrier in October, took photos of it and later e-mailed them to the ship, the US Navy and Pentagon have said.

There is nothing about the incident which constitutes a threat

US Navy spokesman Rear Admiral Steve Pietropaoli

The Pentagon had initially denied that the planes had flown so close.

The Kitty Hawk was approached by Russian fighter jets in the Sea of Japan on three occasions, in October and November.

Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacon said that on the second occasion, on 17 October, the planes flew directly overhead within several hundred feet of the carrier.

He added that the planes took several black-and-white pictures of the ship's deck and e-mailed them with a short message in Russian back to the ship.

Su-27 flankers took part in the operation

Russian officials had earlier claimed that the carrier was taken by surprise and that the pictures captured the panic on deck as the aircraft flew over.

But Navy spokesman Rear Admiral Steve Pietropaoli denied that the Kitty Hawk was surprised.

He said that the aircraft had been tracked by radar almost from take-off.

'No hostile intent'

Other incidents took place on 12 October and 9 November, but in both cases the aircraft were much further from the carrier.

Admiral Pietropaoli denied that the Russian Government had shown any hostile intent towards US naval ships.

"There is nothing about the incident which constitutes a threat," he said.

Mr Bacon added that the ship had not scrambled its own aircraft as it was refuelling and, therefore, moving too slowly to launch them.

No official complaint was made to the Russian authorities, nor did Defence Secretary William Cohen raise the subject in his meeting with Russian Defence Minister Igor Sergeyev earlier this week, he said.

Such incidents were common during the Cold War but have became rarer since it ended.

Mr Bacon said that the carrier had now increased its "alert posture" and would respond more quickly to flyovers.