The Air Self-Defense Force said Wednesday that jet fighter scrambles have reached a level not seen since the height of the Cold War three decades ago, as Russian bombers probe its northern skies and Chinese combat aircraft intrude into its southern air space.

In the year ending March 31, Japanese fighters scrambled 944 times, 16 percent more than the same period the previous year, according to the Self-Defense Forces.

That is the second-highest number of encounters ever recorded over the 12-month period since records began in 1958 and only one less than a record 943 scrambles in 1984.