Dramatic moment squadron of Russian fighter bombers ‘buzz’ warship HMS Queen Elizabeth as crew scramble stealth jets
DRAMATIC footage shows the moment Russian warplanes buzz a British aircraft carrier in a “threatening” manoeuvre.
Vladimir Putin’s jets can be seen flying towards HMS Queen Elizabeth, whose crew scramble its own F-35 stealth fighters to confront them.
The extraordinary video shows the crew warning the Russians to back off as the massive Royal Navy warship sails through the Mediterranean on its first deployment.
The incident happened in 2021 but has now been revealed in a new BBC documentary The Warship: Tour of Duty.
The £3.2 billion HMS Queen Elizabeth and its sister ship HMS Prince of Wales are the UK’s biggest ever warships.
It was was near the Suez Canal on its way to the Far East on a seven-month tour when the Russian planes appeared.
Three SU-24 attack planes deployed from a base in Syria can been seen tearing towards the ship, nicknamed Big Lizzie.
As the aircraft close in at 7000ft one of the crew warns “I’ve got three Russian jets at six miles” while another says: “Visual. Roger. Three Russian aircraft coming in.”
That prompts HMS Queen Elizabeth to warn the Russians they face being shot down.
“This is a coalition warship. Your actions appear to be threatening,” Putin’s planes are told.
“Turn away immediately or I may take action against you.
The F-35 stealth jets from 617 Squadron were carrying out strike missions against ISIS terrorists in the Middle East at the time of the confrontation.
A Royal Navy spokesperson said: “HMS Queen Elizabeth and her multinational taskforce were routinely approached by maritime and airborne forces throughout the successful Carrier Strike Group deployment in 2021.
“As ever, robust measures were in place to protect the group, including an Astute Class submarine, and where necessary and appropriate, routine challenges were issued.”
It comes as the Royal Navy intercepted a Russian warship carrying Putin’s new “unstoppable” 7,000mph hypersonic missiles.
HMS Portland tracked the guided missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov as it sailed close to the UK in the North Sea.
The Type-23 frigate shadowed Vladimir Putin’s warship that set sail with much fanfare for a mission to the Atlantic.
The 2021 incident was one of several encounters between HMS Queen Elizabeth and Russian forces in the Mediterranean.
During on, the navy turned tables on Putin’s submarines which were stalking a Brit aircraft carrier , scrambling helicopters to drive them away.
That came soon after Russian warships fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs in the path of British destroyer HMS Defender to force her out of an area near Crimean waters.