NATO fighter jets scrambled after Russian aircraft violated flight rules over Baltics last week

NATO aircraft assigned to the Alliance's Baltic Air Policing mission carried out one sortie last week to identify and escort a Russian warplane that violated flight rules.

Source: LRT, a Lithuanian public broadcaster, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Lithuania's Defence Ministry reported that NATO fighter jets on air policing duty had taken off last Monday to identify a Su-30 aircraft flying in international airspace from Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast to mainland Russia.

The ministry also noted that NATO air policing fighters had identified an An-26 aircraft flying in international airspace from mainland Russia to Kaliningrad Oblast.

Both aircraft were flying without radar transponders and without flight plans, but they maintained radio contact with the regional area control centre.

Background:

• In early December, NATO fighter jets patrolling the airspace of the Baltic states were scrambled three times to identify and escort Russian aircraft.
• Bloomberg has reported that NATO has asked Türkiye to provide F-16 fighter jets for the Baltic Air Policing mission in 2026, several months earlier than scheduled under the rotation plan.

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