On Monday, the Netherlands’ Defence Ministry revealed that two Dutch F-35 fighter jets intercepted and escorted three Russian military aircraft near Poland after the quick reaction alert was activated.
In a statement, the ministry said that the three aircraft — identified as a Russian IL-20M Coot-A reconnaissance plane and two Su-27 Flankers — had approached the Polish NATO airspace from Kaliningrad.
Two Dutch F-35s stationed in Poland carried out a first interception after activation of the Quick Reaction Alert.
— Netherlands at NATO (@NLatNATO) February 13, 2023
It concerned three Russian aircrafts approaching 🇵🇱airspace from Kaliningrad. The 🇳🇱F-35s escorted them from a distance and transfered to NATO partners. https://t.co/uQCpYEC5GK
“The Dutch F-35s escorted the formation from a distance and handed over the escort to NATO partners,” it added.
Kaliningrad is a Russian Baltic coast enclave located between Lithuania and Poland.
A tucked away headline, but an incident that will certainly will have rung alarm bells in NATO. There’re things bubbling in Kaliningrad, but what? Dutch F-35s intercept three Russian military aircraft over Poland - Netherlands' defence ministry -Reuters UK https://t.co/ul5Dje2uNp
— Henry Bolton OBE 🇬🇧 (@_HenryBolton) February 14, 2023
Currently, the Dutch have eight F-35s deployed in Poland for this month and March, four of which are located at Malbork Air Base for surveillance of NATO airspace above Eastern Europe.