RAF fighters escort ‘nuke sniffer’ plane over Black Sea amid fears Putin may detonate nuclear bomb in warning to West

RAF fighter jets have escorted a 'nuke sniffer' spy plane over the Black Sea amid fears Vladimir Putin may detonate a nuclear bomb in a warning to the West.

Two RAF Typoons were scrambled to escort the Boeing RC-135 before sharply turning on themselves and heading back to NATO-friendly territory.

The RC-135W 'soaks up' enemy signals and is also known as a 'nuke sniffer' because of its capability to test the atmosphere for evidence of radioactivity.

The four-engine jets, called Rivet Joints, are used by Britain to conduct electronic surveillance on enemy targets by monitoring signals from radars and other systems.

The routine run took off from an air base in Romania and came with within miles of the Russian-controlled coastline of Crimea today, according to images shared online.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: "UK fast jets frequently accompany RAF aircraft both for training and operational purposes, this activity is routinely reviewed.

"These flights are conducted in international airspace."

It comes amid heightened fears Mad Vlad could use the Black Sea as ground zero for a nuclear attack.

Putin may choose to launch a low-yield device over the Black Sea or test fire a Poseidon drone off the US coast, experts warned.

The tyrant is “preparing to make key decisions from a bunker” after warning his closest family to be ready to evacuate Moscow in a hurry, reports claim.

Fears of an imminent nuke test on the Ukraine border were raised earlier this month after a train was seen carrying supplies.

Meanwhile NATO warned Russia has deployed its giant new Belgorod submarine which can be armed with terrifying nuclear "doomsday drones".

The Poseidon torpedoes reportedly carry a two-megaton warhead designed to devastate coastal cities with a 300ft radioactive tsunami.

Joseph Cirincione, a distinguished fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft in Washington DC, warned the Russian dictator could initially fire nukes into the Black Sea as a "demonstration shot" before using nuclear weapons on targets in Ukraine.

And in a worrying worst case scenario, Mr Cirincione said Putin could fire at NATO targets or even the United States.

Mr Cirincione said: "The first possibility is you would use a nuclear weapon in a demonstration shot, so you would fire something into the Black Sea, for example.

"The purpose of this is to 'escalate to de-escalate' if the war is going badly.

"If the Russians felt they were on the verge of defeat, they would fire off a nuclear shot to indicate the seriousness of the situation, and to cause the West to back off.

"If that were to happen, I would say the reaction would be shock and horror - but it would not require a military response.

"You don't have to do anything there. I would say the US response would be more diplomatic."

He said Putin could also unleash a "very low yield weapon" on a military target in Ukraine.

Russia is known to have so-called tactical nukes, which can be launched onto the battlefield by Iskander missiles.

They would kill thousands and cause major damage.

The expert went on: "The third possibility is that they use a serious nuclear weapon - Hiroshima sized or more - and it strikes and it destroys a city in Ukraine.

"At that point, that's where things get quite serious.

"I would immediately expect to see long-range military response from Nato.

"Not Nato forces on the ground, but long-range strikes, which we are perfectly capable of doing.

"We could strike the launch site, for example, and definitely send a message saying 'do not do this again'.

"That's what you're trying to do, trying to control the escalation."

But he insisted Nato would not fire a retaliatory nuclear weapon on Russia under this scenario.

He said an all-out nuclear war was possible if Putin targeted the US.

He said: "There's no question the US military command would be nearly universal in demanding we respond with a nuclear strike.

"It would probably be multiple strikes to knock out the command structure and some of their capabilities before they could respond - including knocking out Putin himself."