French fighter jets intercepted six Russian military aircraft over the Baltic Sea
French Rafale fighter jets, operating as part of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, intercepted six Russian military aircraft over the Baltic Sea. The incident occurred on June 2 during a routine patrol of the Baltic states’ airspace.
Upon detecting the unidentified aerial targets, NATO command promptly dispatched two French Rafale fighter jets to the area. These jets are part of the 71st contingent of the Baltic Air Policing mission and are based at the airbase in Šiauliai, Lithuania.
While carrying out the mission, the French pilots visually identified six Russian military aircraft.
Among the aircraft accompanying the French fighters were:
- two Su-35S fighters;
- Su-34 and Su-24 bombers;
- an Il-76 military transport aircraft;
- An-12 and An-30 reconnaissance aircraft.
All air targets were successfully identified in international airspace over the Baltic Sea.
France has currently deployed four two-seat Rafale B fighters in Lithuania, which are part of the 4th Fighter Squadron.
The aircraft are on combat duty as part of the Baltic Air Policing mission, which ensures the protection of the airspace of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.
The NATO mission operates on the Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) principle—a rapid response system that allows fighter jets to be scrambled within minutes of detecting a potential threat.
One of the mission’s key tasks remains monitoring the activity of Russian military aircraft near the Alliance’s borders.
NATO emphasizes that Russian aircraft often fly without their transponders turned on or without pre-submitted flight plans, which creates additional risks for civilian air traffic.
Escorting Russian aircraft in the Baltic Sea region remains routine practice for NATO forces.
In particular, in 2023, British Typhoon fighter jets carried out about 50 interceptions of Russian aircraft in just four months of deployment in the region, indicating a high level of activity by Russian military aviation near the Alliance’s air borders.
This was reported by the General Staff of the French Armed Forces.
French military aircraft took to the skies at least 11 times over the past week as part of a NATO mission to patrol the airspace over the Baltic states to intercept Russian aircraft.
Romanian NATO fighter jets intercepted a Russian reconnaissance aircraft over the Baltic Sea.
Polish MiG-29s intercepted a Russian aircraft over the Baltic Sea.
