Close Encounter

In a grim game of war that is frequently played over the North Atlantic, a giant Soviet TU-95 Bear reconnaissance plane last September zoomed across the invisible line that marks the U.S. defense zone off Iceland. In five minutes, two American F-4 Phantom II interceptors zoomed up from Iceland's Keflavik Airport to draw alongside and escort the trespasser out of the forbidden Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). Last week the U.S. Air Force released a remarkable set of pictures of the interception, photographs so sharp that the faces and gestures of the Soviet crewmen were visible as the American Phantoms hung close.

Ever since the Soviets began making the 6,000-mile flight from Murmansk to Cuba in 1966, they have strayed across the ADIZ more than 100 times, usually deliberately. Their purpose: to measure the time it takes the U.S. aircraft to respond. Electronic tapes monitoring U.S. radar frequencies are then taken back to Moscow for analysis. Even military slang words like "Judy," meaning target sighted, or "no joy," for missing a target, are studied intensively by the Soviets, just as the Americans record and examine every move made by the Soviets.

The routine for the interceptions is clearly understood by both sides. The jets close in on their targets at speeds of more than 1,000 m.p.h. After pulling in tight, the Americans signal by hand for the intruder to move away from the forbidden zones. Slowly, the ponderous Bears change direction and depart. No shot has ever been fired by either side.

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