Russian spy plane dropped sonar trackers in path of Royal Navy aircraft carrier

A Russian spy plane dropped tens of sonar devices in the path of the UK's flagship aircraft carrier in a suspected attempt to harass the warship that prompted RAF fighter jets to scramble.

The "Bear-F" maritime patrol aircraft swooped "unnecessarily close" over HMS Prince of Wales in the Norwegian Sea, making three passes to scatter the expendable sonobuoys, which are about a metre long and shaped like a wide tube.

They are each attached to a parachute that drifts to the surface of the water.

The incident on 2 July is thought to be the first time, at least in living memory, that Russia has used the tactic of deploying large numbers of these devices very close to a Royal Navy vessel.

Two F-35 fast jets took off from the deck of the carrier to intercept the Russian plane.

"This activity was unsafe and unprofessional," a Ministry of Defence spokesperson said.

"The Russian aircraft was intercepted and escorted by two UK F-35 jets from HMS Prince of Wales until it left the area."

Sonobuoys are commonly used by militaries across the world to try to track submarines.

But dropping a load of them close to a giant aircraft carrier appeared more likely to be an attempt to harass the vessel, a defence source said.

It was also risky because the sonars could have drifted on to the deck or impacted the jets.

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The Ministry of Defence said the action of dropping sonobuoys was deemed to be "unsafe" because they were landing so close to the aircraft carrier and with fast jets in the air.

The spokesperson did not say exactly how close the contraptions were dropped to the carrier, but it is understood to have been "very close" - including in front of the warship.

The UK aircraft carrier has deployed to High North as part of a NATO operation to bolster security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic.

The Russian activity comes ahead of a major NATO summit of world leaders in Ankara on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Dan Jarvis, the new defence secretary, visited the aircraft carrier over the weekend in the wake of the incident, accompanied by Icelandic foreign minister Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir.

More than 1,500 British personnel are deployed on the carrier, as well as an escorting warship, the Type 45 destroyer HMS Duncan, and RFA Tidespring, a Royal Fleet Auxiliary support vessel.

(c) Sky News 2026: Russian spy plane dropped sonar trackers in path of Royal Navy aircraft carrier