As a (former Army) dad of a newly-minted NCO in the US Navy (who is slated to go to a DDG soon), I had a question for the Navy folks here.

Russian Jets Buzz Over U.S. Navy Destroyer USS Donald Cook

What is the normal response of US Navy vessels to this kind of provocative act? Obviously, I have no idea what ROE the USS Donald Cook is operating under there in the Baltic. Obviously, the Russians and USSR have a long history of this kind of behavior--both above and under the water. Obviously, the Cook has the ability to take the fighters out from a long distance away (>100 nm) if they wanted to.

My guess is that the Cook is there to support freedom of navigation, show the flag and show support for our allies in the region. In that role, perhaps they are supposed to just take what comes? If so, that's a very tough role for a commander to operate under.

I'd love to hear from some former or current Navy folks how this kind of "game" is actually played? Further, when is a commander allowed to put on his "self-defense" hat?

My guess is it's a game both sides play, and we could have swatted them like flies with the Phalanx gun. But I'm also guessing that ships turning on their defensive weapons would be a bad idea for two reasons. One, it could be seen as provocative. Two, you want to keep them guessing as to exactly what kind of defensive systems you have. For instance, it you light them up with a radar, they now know what kind of radar you have, the frequency, the range, etc.

But I'll shut up now and listen to the people that actually know something.

We're in international waters, they're in international airspace. Flying so close can be provocative and is always unprofessional, but so long as no one makes a mistake there's no harm done and only peacetime ROE are violated. Tactics like this and similar close brushes between ships are not uncommon when there's territorial disputes or one country simply wants to send a message that they're on-guard and ready. You'll see far worse in the South China Sea before long.....

Kerry said today the captain could have shot it down with the current ROE

If you're interested, here's a good primer on how self-defense ROE works:

https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/pdf/OLH_2015_Ch5.pdf

Bottom line, the CO always has the right and obligation to defend his ship against an attack or imminent threat of attack. I suspect the CO looked at a variety of indicators here and concluded that the Russian pilot wasn't intent on starting WWIII, making this more a safety of navigation situation than a self-defense scenario.

The Iranians like to play similar games with us in the Strait of Hormuz, usually with small boats. You always have to be vigilant and thinking through whether what you're seeing requires a response, but in many cases the right answer will be to do nothing. There are those who would love to draw us offsides, so to speak.

The US and the former Soviet Union entered into an agreement known as the Prevention of Dangerous Military Activities (PDMA) agreement in 1989-1990 (if I recall correctly). Unless that has been rescinded, the type of "hot dogging" these clowns were engaging in violates that agreement.

Would be a damn shame if some one was getting some 9 iron practice off the helo deck during the flybys.

I read that the jets were unarmed. I'm guessing that the Captain did not respond aggressively for that reason. Can the presence of fighter armaments be determined/detected from a significant distance? It the fighters are armed, do they emit a distinctive signal or other "tell" before weapons are fired?

The Russians are seemingly becoming more aggressive in multiple ways militarily around the globe. Putin apparently enjoys jabbing Obama, probably because he knows he can without fear of meaningful consequences, military or otherwise. (JMO).

I clearly sense that one of the presidential candidates would not stand for such intimidating provocations from Russia. I'm not suggesting a war would ensue; there are many serious retaliations of a non-military kind that could be utilized.

Fairly level-headed take on it: http://www.navytimes.com/story/military/2016/04/13/why-navy-didnt-shoot-down-russian-jets/83000858/

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Kerry said today the captain could have shot it down with the current ROE

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Kerry? John Kerry? Anti Vietnam War John Kerry? The same one next to Jane Fonda at an anti-war rally? That means a lot coming from him.

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The Iranians like to play similar games with us in the Strait of Hormuz, usually with small boats.

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They did it with a passenger jet.

If youre a Captain and need to review photo/video evidence to determine how exposed you left your boat, that's a problem. Sure- pilots don't start wars- but that really just means that the Captain had a free shot and wimped out (in respect to his naval predecessors). Russia [who keeps getting friskier] views this as a win and a sign of American weakness, but wouldn't have really cared had they lost a plane.

If youre a Captain and need to review photo/video evidence to determine how exposed you left your boat, that's a problem. Sure- pilots don't start wars- but that really just means that the Captain had a free shot and wimped out (in respect to his naval predecessors). Russia [who keeps getting friskier] views this as a win and a sign of American weakness, but wouldn't have really cared had they lost a plane.

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Russia [who keeps getting friskier] views this as a win and a sign of American weakness

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No they don't.

Ags, this has been happening for decades(half a century). We also have done this same thing. Been there done that. Now with the media/SOCIAL media, everything get recorded and out to the public real time. Russia getting frisky is a direct result of the piss ant in the White House and our useless, current Secretary of State (who followed a lying, corrupt Secretary).

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The takeaway is that the captain is a seasoned professional who maintained his calm in a time of high stress, while some here don't fit that description.

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Makes me think of the scene in U571 where the German fighter is making a pass on the U-boat. I am sure there were some of those feelings amongst the crew.

Once while operating off the coast of a less-than-friendly country, one of their aircraft decided to come out to take a look at our ship. My boss, on his final deployment and feeling a little salty, announced that he was going to walk outside so they could get a good look at him. As I followed behind him, he turned and said "Don't worry, I'm just going out to wave hello." I replied "I know, sir, I'm just here to make sure you use all five fingers."