BATH, Maine — An Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer built at Bath Iron Works during the 1990s was the subject of “multiple, aggressive flight maneuvers” by two Russian warplanes Monday and Tuesday.
The Sukhoi SU-24 warplanes passed the bow of the USS Donald Cook close enough to create a wake in the water, according to a release from U.S. European Command.
A Russian KA-27 Helix helicopter also made seven passes around the destroyer, taking photographs.
Russian planes also flew about 20 passes near the ship April 11, coming within 1,000 yards and about 100 feet above the ship, officials said.
“The Russian aircraft flew in a simulated attack profile and failed to respond to repeated safety advisories in both English and Russian,” according to the statement. “USS Donald Cook’s commanding officer deemed several of these maneuvers as unsafe or unprofessional.”
The USS Donald Cook was conducting exercises with a Polish helicopter in the Baltic Sea.
Flight operations were suspended until the warplanes left the area, according to the Navy.
“This incident … is entirely inconsistent with the professional norms of militaries operating in proximity to each other in international water and international airspace,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest told Reuters.
Simulated attacks against aircraft or ships, performing acrobatics over ships or dropping hazardous objects near them are prohibited under a 1972 agreement between the U.S. and Russia.
U.S. officials are using existing diplomatic channels to address the interactions while the incidents are being reviewed through U.S. Navy channels, according to the Navy.
The USS Donald Cook was commissioned in December 1998. The ship’s homeport is at Rota, Spain.