Two F-35 Lightning II stealth fighters of the Royal Dutch Air Force (RNLAF) intercepted three Russian aircraft that approached Polish airspace on Monday (13).
The F-35A fighter jets were triggered to identify a formation of aircraft, which approached the Polish NATO area of responsibility, coming from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. The formation was later identified, consisting of a pair of Su-27 Flanker fighters escorting an Il-20M Coot-A, a turboprop modified for signal collection missions (ELINT).
In a note, the Dutch Ministry of Defense says that the F-35s escorted the Russians from a distance, handing over the mission to other NATO partners.
Eight Dutch stealth aircraft are in Poland, as part of NATO's posture of reinforced defense of its eastern flank, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which will be one year old on the 24th of this month. Four planes are operating the Rapid Reaction Alert (QRA) service from Malbork Air Base, performing airspace policing missions.
The other four units are involved in a training program with the other allies, which is now nearing completion. If necessary, they can be quickly deployed to perform in QRA missions. The planes return to the country of origin in March.
