The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) has released Heads-Up Display (HUD) footage, filmed by an F-16 of the 331 Squadron based at Bodo, during the escort of a Russian Su-34 Fullback long-range strike plane on armed patrol off Finmark on Oct. 29.
This was the first time the Su-34s were observed and identified while flying in international airspace off Norway.
The video does not show it very clearly. But according to Norway’s military, as the Norwegian F-16 was getting closer to the Mig-31’s left wing, the Foxhound initiated a sudden maneuver that forced the the Norwegian interceptor to perform an evasive left turn to avoid a mid-air collision.
The footage does not show the close call: all we can see is the F-16 roll to the left while approaching the Mig-31, which appears to be flying more or less straight when it enters the HUD field of view. Nevertheless, Norwegian authorities said the video proves how dangerous and aggressive Russian pilots are during encounters such as these, which have become quite frequent in the Nordic region of Europe.
Photographs taken by RNoAF F-16s on QRA (Quick Reaction Alert) at Bodo airbase were also released last month. They depict a Su-34 Russian aircraft carrying what looks like a single external fuel tank and two Vympel R-73 air-to-air missiles, shadowed by another F-16 carrying two drop tanks and two AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles.
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