AIr Force General Gregory Guillot’s comments came as the clip of the September 23 mid-air altercation between the US fighter jet and a Russian Su-35 emerged overnight.
The footage appeared to be shot from the cockpit of the US fighter jet which at the time was still flying in the Alaskan Air Defence Identification Zone - that’s defined as an airspace which while still beyond US sovereign territory, remains an area which the US is still deemed to have air traffic control over.
The clip appears to show how the Su-35 approaching the F-16 from behind before buzzing past the US jet’s left side, causing it to rock from the force.
“The conduct of one Russian Su-35 was unsafe, unprofessional and endangered all - not what you’d see in a professional air force,” said General Guillot, who is head of the North American Aerospace Defence Command.
The September 23 altercation is the latest near-miss involving Russian and US jets.
It comes just two months after eight Russian military planes and four of the Kremlin’s navy vessels, two of which were submarines, also approached Alaska during joint drills conducted by China and Russia.
Prior to that Russian and Chinese bombers flew in formation, once again in international airspace, off Alaska in July.
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