German Eurofighters intercept Russian spy jet
German Eurofighters intercept Russian spy jet
German Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons intercepted a Russian Su-24MR tactical reconnaissance aircraft near Latvian territorial waters on Saturday (June 1st).
The incident was reported by the Team Luftwaffe, which shared photos on social media.
The Su-24MR, a special reconnaissance variant of the Su-24 tactical bomber, was identified without a flight plan or radio communication. These aircraft are capable of all-weather operations and are equipped with sophisticated electronic warfare and surveillance systems.
The interception was conducted from Lielvārde Air Base in Latvia, part of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission.
Since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, NATO has intensified its air policing missions over the Baltic states. Germany, participating in these missions since 2005, has annually contributed to the Reinforced Air Policing Baltic States for at least four months with a joint deployment contingent, including flying units and support forces.
The NATO Baltic Air Policing mission, operational since 2004, ensures the integrity of the airspace over Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, which lack the resources to patrol their skies independently. This mission serves as a collective and defensive peacetime measure, highlighting NATO’s commitment to the security of its member states.
They don't say what happened after that. Intercepted, aaand? Was it grounded, pilots arrested and interrogated? They probably just "escorted" them back to russia.
Standard operating procedure is the Russian plane leaves and is escorted out when intercepted. This happens all the time.
How is that a deterrent from doing it again?
They should be brought down, arrested and interrogated, plane inspected, surveillance data taken, then demand explanations from russia.If they don't comply when told to land - shoot them down. That's what Turkey did and they no longer have this issue. russia only understands brute force.EDIT: Someone just pointed out they didn't breach the airspace this time.
EDIT 2: Lemmy's strike-through formatting isn't working?
EDIT 3: Working now, separate strikes for each line.
The Russian plane didn't breach Latvian air space, it just flew near it. The article spelled it out.
Okay, I missed that. That changes everything I wrote in other comments 😅. Thought it was another case of breaching the air space.
Standard operating procedure is the Russian plane leaves and is escorted out when intercepted. This happens all the time.
US B-52 Bombers fly close to Russia’s borders escorted by German, Spanish, and Polish fighter jets --- (Archived link)
[...] This deployment is a routine yet significant demonstration of NATO’s capability to operate seamlessly and maintain stability in the Baltic Sea region.
During the mission, the bombers flew close to Russian territory in Kaliningrad, circling over Lithuania and traversing Dutch, German, and Polish airspace. [...] These sorties serve as a reminder of NATO’s resolve and readiness to respond to potential threats in the region.
routine
Not just routine but planned and announced months prior. It's also routine to cancel such things, that the US didn't do that specifically around the time they announced Ukraine could use US weapons to hit targets in Russia is a rather big nod with the sabre.
But, yes, routine.