I didn't expect it so soon, but since they are going to send ships there later, it would make sense to do some "route-proving" flights!Two Russian strategic bombers land in Venezuela
MOSCOW, Russia (AP) -- The Interfax news agency is quoting Russia's Defense Ministry as saying that two Russian strategic bombers have landed in Venezuela as part of military maneuvers.
Interfax quoted the ministry as saying in a statement that the two Tu-160 strategic bombers landed in Venezuela on Wednesday.
The ministry said the planes will conduct training flights over neutral waters over the next few days before heading back to Russia.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/10/russian.bombers.venezuela/index.html
In Moscow, Defense Ministry spokesman Alexander Drobyshevsky refused to say how long the Venezuela deployment will last or say whether the planes carried any weapons.
The military said NATO fighters escorted the two Russian bombers on their way to Venezuela.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hfIiK6PxjUtrvGslu89oIPM-imOAD9340L4O0
The use of forward landing airfields in Latin America would practically erase the time constraints for the Russian bombers and make their presence near the U.S. borders almost permanent, the general said. ..
Both Tu-160 and Tu-95MS bombers have been recently modernized and fitted with new X-555 cruise missiles with a range of over 3,500 km (2,200 miles). Therefore, the bombers do not have to be permanently based near the U.S. borders to hit any target on U.S. territory in case of a potential conflict.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080724/114821813.html
Cool pics-
http://en.rian.ru/photolents/20080725/114896167.html