RAF Typhoons have been scrambled to intercept two Russian supersonic bombers heading towards UK airspace.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman confirmed that the Russian Tupolev TU 160 aircraft are in the UK's "area of interest," but have not yet entered UK airspace, Sky News reports.

The Typhoons, which were dispatched from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, are currently escorting the bombers south across the North Sea.

They are part of the UK's Quick Reaction Alert.

The UK's airspace covers a 12-mile radius out from the UK coastline.

NATO jets are being scrambled to intercept Russian jets with increasing frequency amid heightened tensions between the West and Moscow over the Ukraine crisis.