French Jets Scrambled Amid Baltic Tensions
- French warplanes were scrambled 11 times over the past week as part of NATO's Baltic Air Policing Mission, France's armed forces spokesperson confirmed on Thursday.
- Guillaume Vernet, the spokesperson, said the high frequency of interceptions might indicate Moscow's intent to "flex its muscles" following French and Swedish fighters intercepting six Russian aircraft.
- The intercepted Russian military aircraft included armed fighter jets, intelligence, and transport planes flying without flight plans or radio contact. Vernet described the incursions as "provocations."
- Swedish Air Force Gripen fighters conducted coordinated interceptions, marking a significant shift for Sweden, which joined the Alliance in March 2024 after more than 200 years of military non-alignment.
- The incidents raise fears that the Ukraine war could spill into NATO's northern borders, following previous drone incursions into the airspace of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
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30 Articles
Several Russian aircraft were found in the Baltic area of responsibility. On mission on the spot, two French Rafale intercepted these aircraft and escorted them out of the area. No radio contact was made between the French aircraft under NATO command and the Russian aircraft.
Combat aircraft deployed to Lithuania on a NATO mission intercepted on Tuesday six Russian military aircraft in the Baltic region. This was confirmed by the NATO Air Command (Air Command) on the X social network. ...
As part of NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission, French Rafales are positioned in Lithuania and deployed when a suspicious aircraft is detected in the Baltic area of responsibility, without a flight plan or radio contact
NATO fighters intercept six Russian military aircraft over the Baltic in a single day
French and Swedish fighter jets scrambled from Šiauliai Air Base in northern Lithuania on 2 June to intercept six Russian military aircraft operating within the Baltic Area of Responsibility, NATO Air Command confirmed. The six aircraft spanned four distinct mission categories simultaneously — air superiority, strike, heavy transport, and aerial reconnaissance — a breadth of Russian activity that has not been typical of single-day intercept even…
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