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Russia 21
Supplementary memorandum from the Ministry of Defence
1a) How many times have Russian military aircraft attempted to enter UK territorial airspace in 2007, 2008 and 2009, without authorisation? Answer: · Nil. No Russian military aircraft have attempted to enter UK territorial airspace, which extends 12 nautical miles from the UK coastline. Russian military aircraft operate in international airspace and have every right to exercise their defence capabilities. 1b) How many times have Russian military aircraft attempted to enter the UK flight information region in 2007, 2008 and 2009, without authorisation? Answer: · Russian military aircraft entered the UK Flight Information Region on ten separate days in 2007. · Russian military aircraft entered the UK Flight Information Region on six separate days in 2008. · Russian military aircraft entered the UK Flight Information Region on two separate days in 2009 (correct as of 1 May). The UK Flight Information Region, outside of 12 nautical miles from the UK coastline, remains international airspace but to transit the area aircraft are required to file flight plans, communicate with Air Traffic Control and utilise secondary surveillance radar (SSR), a means for providing information on the air traffic control agency and height. Russian military aircraft do not adhere to these accepted Air Traffic Control requirements. This is against International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) regulations for which Russia is a signatory state and poses a potential flight safety risk. We are taking this issue forward with Department for Transport, who through the Civil Aviation Authority and the National Air Traffic Services contract provide Air Traffic Control services. The UK Flight Information Region (see map below) contains some of the busiest airspace in Europe including the transatlantic air route structure. Within the UK Flight Information Region, Air Traffic Control operations rely largely on SSR to maintain safe distances between aircraft operating in close proximity. Aircraft not transponding SSR can therefore be invisible to Air Traffic Control operators. Risks to flight safety are mitigated by close liaison between UK Air Defence and Air Traffic Control units. Air Defence units use a combination of primary radar and SSR and are able to detect such aircraft within Air Defence radar coverage. The launch of UK Quick Reaction Alert aircraft to intercept unidentified aircraft also mitigates the flight safety risk. UK FLIGHT INFORMATION REGION
2a) How many times have Russian military aircraft attempted to enter the airspace of NATO members in 2007, 2008 and 2009, without authorisation? It is not possible to answer this question in the timescale as a co-ordinated response could only be initiated through SHAPE Headquarters in Brussels and the reports are likely to be classified. The release of such information, which would likely require approval from the remaining 27 NATO member states, would also not meet the Inquiry's timeframe. 2b) How many times have Russian military aircraft attempted to enter the flight information region of NATO members in 2007, 2008 and 2009? Please refer to the previous answer. If this information is not able to be provided, a statement to the extent to which the UK Government considers such incursions to have taken place and the level of threat that this poses to NATO members would be helpful. There have been no unauthorised Russian military incursions into UK territorial airspace or territorial waters in 2007, 2008 and 2009. The re-emergence of long-range flights from Russia is something that the Russians are perfectly entitled to do and those flights that have entered the UK Flight Information Region do not pose a military threat to the UK. The UK Government is not in a position to comment on the level of threat that this poses to other NATO member states or indeed whether any incursions have taken place. 3a) How many times have Russian naval vessels entered, or attempted to enter, British territorial waters in 2007, 2008 and 2009, without authorisation? Answer: · Nil. There have been no incursions by Russian naval vessels into British territorial waters, without authorisation, in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Where Russian naval vessels have visited UK ports they have gained appropriate diplomatic clearances. Article 17 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea allows for innocent passage: 'Subject to this Convention, ships of all States, whether coastal or land-locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea'. This means that Russian naval vessels have the right to transit through UK waters so long as they may pass through without conducting any military activity and proceed in a manner not 'considered to be prejudicial to the peace, good order or security of the coastal State' (Article 19 Meaning of Innocent Passage) without asking for permission. 3b) How many times have Russian naval vessels entered, or attempted to enter, British exclusive economic zone seas in 2007, 2008 and 2009, without authorisation? Answer: · There is no requirement for a country to seek permission for its naval vessels to operate in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of another country (Article 58 of UN Convention of the Law of the Sea). 3c) How many times have Russian naval vessels entered, or attempted to enter, NATO waterspace in 2007, 2008 and 2009, without authorisation?
We are unable to answer this question within the timescale of the Inquiry. 8 May 2009 |