British Air Force Successfully Intercepted 50 Russian Aircraft In Baltic Sea Air Area

JAKARTA - The British Royal Air Force (RAF) managed to intercept 50 Russian aircraft in the Baltic Sea airspace over the past four months on a NATO air surveillance mission in Estonia, the British Ministry of Defense said.

140 Expeditionary Air Wing (140 EAW) members were deployed to Amari Air Base since early March, along with RAF fighter jet squadron Eurofighter Typhoon.

After completing their mission in the Baltic Sea, British troops returned to RAF Lossiemouth airbase in Scotland.

During their mission in Estonia, British pilots practiced flights together with German military pilots to intercept Russian aircraft.

"The successful British leadership of NATO's air surveillance mission in Estonia, which resulted in the interception of dozens of Russian aircraft by RAF, sent a strong message to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin that we are united with our allies to counter any threats to our borders," said British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, as reported by TASS Aug. 4.

The British air force acted in coordination with their colleagues from Portugal and Romania, who were responsible for similar operations in Lithuania.

Separately, the Russian Ministry of Defense said on various occasions that all Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft carried out their flights by complying with international rules.

It is known that the next country to lead the NATO Baltic Air Policing mission in Estonia, which was launched in 2014, is Spain.