Close encounters between U.S. Navy F-4 Phantom fighter jets and Soviet Tu-95 Bear bombers were frequent in the skies near aircraft carriers around the world.
A collection of shots taken by the U.S. planes, can be found in the San Diego Air & Space Museum archive on Flickr.
These photos tell us a story of tense moments when Phantoms launched by American flattops intercepted and shadowed, sometimes in “tight formation”, USSR strategic bombers that skirted aircraft carriers at low level to probe their reaction times.
Some shots depict Soviet crew member greeting their colleagues in the American fighter jets with hand language.
During the Cold War Soviet bombers were often intercepted in the Mediterranean Sea by Italian F-104 Starfighter jets. And here’s a collection of images taken during those close encounters with the “zombies.”
Image credit: U.S. Navy via San Diego Air & Space Museum
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