OC-135 makes precautionary landing in Russia

The USAF's OC-135, used for Open Skies treaty flights over Russia had to make a precautionary landing shortly after departing from a Russian airfield on a treaty flight. The aircraft had Russian observers on board, when the landing gear failed to fully retract after takeoff. It's being called an emergency landing, but the problem wasn't that bad.

The aircraft made a safe landing back at the airfield, and after the observers deplaned, it departed for Japan, for the necessary repairs. After repairs are completed the aircraft will return to Nebraska, where it's based.

www.defensenews.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

Well thats one way to get the observers off the flight.

Edit: Now they can fly over Russia 'unobserved'...

a reply to: intrptr

No they can't. They still have a Russian liaison on board for air traffic control purposes.

And they had to fly a direct route out of the country which means they wouldn't be seeing much unless ATC wanted to route them near Russian bases.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Glad everyone did not end up a crispy critter.... This is a much more civilized way of doing things versus a U-2 getting shot down like in the olden days.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Just one? Thats better than however many there were before. Open Skies, Treaty, Peace and all that. (spy plane).

We got a rundown on its capability? (portion redacted)

Edit:

The Treaty on Open Skies entered into force on January 1, 2002, and currently has 34 States Parties. It establishes a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of its participants.

Wiki

a reply to: 727Sky

It really is. Only commercial grade sensors and all images are reviewed by the over flown nation before they're allowed to leave the country.

a reply to: intrptr

And you think no one is going to notice when they start flying towards a base, and the crew in back starts running the cameras? What, you think they lock the cockpit door and don't let him see anything in the back?

Russian military controllers were keeping an eye on the plane and made sure it took a direct way out that kept it away from areas they might want to have observed.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: intrptr

You now as well I the spy game is about hidden technology, including cameras that see a long ways and do that surreptitiously if need be. Especially telling, they fake a landing gear problem to remove as many observers as possible on the flight 'out'.

They are specifically engineering the flight to get a look at anything they can without being 'monitored' from within the aircraft.

But thanks for telling about it the way you usually do, nothing to see here, move along.

a reply to: intrptr

Sometimes what you see, really is what you get. There is no "hidden technology" on the Open Skies aircraft. Part of the treaty is that the nation to be flown over gets to do a detailed inspection of the aircraft prior to the flights to ensure that there are no sensors that shouldn't be there. All sensors are required to have an external cover installed for transit flights, that can't be removed from inside the aircraft.

Each State Party shall have the right to take part in the certification of sensors
installed on observation aircraft in accordance with the provisions of Annex D. No
observation aircraft of a given type shall be used for observation flights until such type of
observation aircraft and its sensors has been certified in accordance with the provisions of
Annex D to this Treaty.

www.osce.org...

Open Skies is a feel good treaty more than anything. Very little information of value is gotten from the flights, by either side, because all the images taken have to be approved by the country allowing the over flights. They're also extremely limited in the sensors they can use and where they can fly. The satellites going overhead get more useful information than Open Skies does.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
The USAF's OC-135, used for Open Skies treaty flights over Russia had to make a precautionary landing shortly after departing from a Russian airfield on a treaty flight. The aircraft had Russian observers on board, when the landing gear failed to fully retract after takeoff. It's being called an emergency landing, but the problem wasn't that bad.

The aircraft made a safe landing back at the airfield, and after the observers deplaned, it departed for Japan, for the necessary repairs. After repairs are completed the aircraft will return to Nebraska, where it's based.

www.defensenews.com...

Hey Zaph, the "Daily Fail" is putting a different slant on the story in the UK, apparently it took off from Ulan-Ude, in the Republic of Buryatia after a stopover and had to make an emergency landing at Khabarovsk.

Daily Mail

They make it sound quite scary whereas you explain it as run of the mill mission with a return to departure point.

Wonder who i am going to believe

a reply to: Zaphod58

Sometimes what you see, really is what you get.

Not when it comes to spying.

There is no "hidden technology" on the Open Skies aircraft.

Its a spy aircraft, but thanks for the euphemism.

a reply to: corblimeyguvnor

As with every Aviation related story there's the early version and the later version. They initially made it sound like they went back to the base they launched from, now they're saying they went to Khabarovsk, to drop the observers off. From there, it was a very short hop out of Russian territory.

a reply to: intrptr

No, it's not. It's an observation aircraft, with commercial sensors, flown with personnel from the nation being overflown on board, and with all the images taken shown to the overflown nation. A spy aircraft is flown with advanced technology, preferably without their knowledge, to look at areas they don't want seen. You don't invite foreign countries, that you're observing, to be part of certifying sensors for, make detailed inspections of, or to fly on, spy aircraft.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: corblimeyguvnor

As with every Aviation related story there's the early version and the later version. They initially made it sound like they went back to the base they launched from, now they're saying they went to Khabarovsk, to drop the observers off. From there, it was a very short hop out of Russian territory.

We all know Jim Stone right? Here is his slant on things ..... i quote

One of America's best surveillance aircraft has made a flawless and willful landing in Russia with the claim it's landing gear had a problem. I don't believe the official story, and I also don't believe Russia's reaction. I think the landing of this aircraft was for a technology transfer to Russia, willfully done by Clinton and Obama before Trump gets in, to weaken the deck of cards Trump has to play with. I believe both Obama and Hillary hate America and want this country destroyed, and the landing of this aircraft in Russia is just another "uranium deal". It could not have been worse. Obviously the media will play this down, but this was huge, and it is not conceivable for me that it was not intentional. The equipment aboard this particular aircraft is something Russia drools for, Gee, thanks for just handing it to them HILLARY.

It's life Jim but not as we know it!! - Dr Mcoy

a reply to: corblimeyguvnor

From your own source...

Earlier, the Russian Defence Ministry's Nuclear Risk Reduction Centre had announce the US Boeing OC-135B aircraft's observation flight over Russian territory between July 25 and 30.

An army source suggested the malfunctioning was 'not coincidental', and perhaps related to recent military exercises in the area.

originally posted by: thesungod
a reply to: corblimeyguvnor

From your own source...

Earlier, the Russian Defence Ministry's Nuclear Risk Reduction Centre had announce the US Boeing OC-135B aircraft's observation flight over Russian territory between July 25 and 30.

An army source suggested the malfunctioning was 'not coincidental', and perhaps related to recent military exercises in the area.

and your point is?

a reply to: corblimeyguvnor

God that's funny as hell. The OC-135 is far from one of our best. The Russian aircraft used for their Open Skies flight has better cameras mounted than it does. The simple fact is that the plane in use was built in 1961. It's old, and they break sometimes.

I wonder if he's aware of the fact that it flies 3-5 missions a year over Russia, and spends the time between flights on those missions parked in Russia.

a reply to: thesungod

If it was, it was a horrible plan, because at the point they dropped the Russian observers off they were only about 100 miles from leaving Russian territory. So they had Russian personnel watching everything they did until landing.

a reply to: Zaphod58
a reply to: corblimeyguvnor

That's my point to both of you. What if the malfunction story IS a cover. What if the rinky dink "spy" plane accidently flew over a mobile missile sight, so secret the liason said Crap, I didn't even know this was here. Then they had to fly to THAT place to get scrubbed. Tell the public the malfunction story.

a reply to: Zaphod58

You don't invite foreign countries, that you're observing, to be part of certifying sensors for, make detailed inspections of, or to fly on, spy aircraft.

Exactly and imo, why they 'removed' them.

You say there was one left, the reason they had a bunch onboard was to monitor all the instrument screens while in flight. One man can't possibly do all that.

Now tell me about all the secret stealth monitoring suite of instruments in the Public Realm.