An unarmed Russian Air Force aircraft overflew the US
Capitol, the Pentagon, Central Intelligence Agency and Joint Base Andrews at
low altitude on Wednesday as part of a longstanding treaty that allows the
militaries of the United States and Russia to observe the other from the air,
according to two people familiar with the flight.
The flight was part of the Treaty on Open Skies, which
allows military aircraft from the United States and Russia and other nations to
fly aerial observation flights to observe military sites of the 34 signatory
nations.
The Russian Air Force Tupolev Tu-154 on Wednesday afternoon
passed at around 3,700 feet over downtown Washington and Joint Base Andrews in
Maryland, where Air Force One is based, according to tracking website
Flightradar24.
The jet is authorized to enter P-56, the highly secure
airspace surrounding the White House.
A second flight by the same jet is planned for between 5
p.m. and 6 p.m. Wednesday, when the Russian jet will overfly Bedminster, New
Jersey, where President Donald Trump is vacationing, according to two people
familiar with the US government-approved flight.
A law enforcement source told CNN that the plane also
overflew Camp David, the presidential retreat in the Catoctin Mountains, the
Trump National Golf Course in Virginia, and Mount Weather, one of the US
government's secret relocation bunkers.
United States Air
Force personnel were on the flight and the aircraft is capable of a variety of
intelligence gathering, one of the people said.
The Open Skies Treaty has been in effect since 2002 and over
1,200 flights have been conducted since, which contributes to verification of
compliance with arms control agreements, according to the US Defense Threat
Reduction Agency.
Dan Gaffney, spokesman for the DTRA, declined to confirm the
surveilled targets. The agency can only confirm specific locations once a
mission is over.
"The treaty is designed to enhance mutual understanding
and confidence by giving all participants, regardless of size, a direct role in
gathering information through aerial imaging on military forces and activities
of concern to them," according to the State Department.
Law enforcement agencies were given very little warning of
these "short notice" flights, which are authorized by the
treaty. The Russian aircraft has the
ability to perform a variety of intelligence gathering functions, including
aerial photography, thermal imaging, and picking up signals intelligence.
According to the DTRA, Open Skies flights receive air
traffic control priority and are closely coordinated with the Federal Aviation Administration.
The treaty flights are fairly common and the same Russian
Air Force jet was spotted recently landing at McConnell Air Force Base in
Wichita, Kansas. The flight Wednesday is notable because of the high-profile
nature of its surveillance targets in the nation's capital.
The US Capitol Police sent an alert regarding plans of an
aircraft to overfly Washington between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Wednesday.
"The aircraft will be large and may fly directly over
the US Capitol," according to the alert. "This flight will be
monitored by the US Capitol Police Command Center and other federal government
agencies."
The statement did not mention that the aircraft would be
flown by the Russian Air Force.
The Russian Embassy in the United States did not immediately
respond to a request for comment.
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