You know, I find it absolutely appalling that the major search engines aren't covering or showing ANYTHING about Russia, Ukraine, Jets coming close to the US, the NATO/Russian Opposing War Games in the same area, or any of this stuff.

I'm having to do specific searches to find ANYTHING on Russian Bear Bombers coasting the US.

50 Miles....

There are three important numbers when it comes to coastline.... dictated by International Law.

3 mile limit - 1 league or 3 NM

12 mile limit - Territorial Limit

200 mile limit - Exclusive Zone


In the first one, the 3 nm limit was basically a gentleman's agreement from most countries in the 19th century. That limit still exists in US law for things like dump garbage or sewage overboard (you have to be outside that limit to empty your holding tanks for example).

The 12 mile limit is the Territorial limit of the US border - AS LONG AS THOSE TRAVERSING are doing so for PEACEFUL PURPOSES.

The 200 mile limit is an economic exclusive zone, meaning that other countries can't drill there legally, they can't fish there without permission of the host country and the fish and food in the sea belong to the country in it's borders.

A coastal nation has control of all economic resources within its exclusive economic zone, including fishing, mining, oil exploration, and any pollution of those resources. However, it cannot prohibit passage or loitering above, on, or under the surface of the sea that is in compliance with the laws and regulations adopted by the coastal State in accordance with the provisions of the UN Convention, within that portion of its exclusive economic zone beyond its territorial sea.
When you fly inside of a 200 mile limit with nuclear armed weapons systems, you're poking at the country you're flying near.

If you're inside of a 50 mile range, there's nothing to stop you from hitting your target.

If they came with 12 miles, we can LEGALLY shoot them down (and they know it, we know it, etc)

Now.... read this:

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD, /ˈnɔræd/) is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and defense for North America.[3] Headquarters for NORAD and the NORAD/USNORTHCOM command center are located at Peterson Air Force Base in El Paso County, near Colorado Springs, Colorado. The nearby Cheyenne Mountain nuclear bunker has the Alternative Command Center. The NORAD commander and deputy commander are respectively a U.S. four-star General or equivalent and a Canadian three-star general or equivalent.
Basically.... we will see them (radar, satellite, other means) and scramble jets. I find it incomprehensible the Jets didn't catch them until the Aleutians.