UK Scrambles Jets Three Times in Three Days to Intercept Russian Aircraft

British Typhoon fighter jets based in Poland were scrambled three times this week to intercept Russian military aircraft flying close to NATO airspace, the UK Ministry of Defense said on Sunday.

he aircraft, deployed at Malbork Air Base in northern Poland as part of NATO’s enhanced Air Policing mission, were launched twice on April 15 and a third time two days later.

The first intercept involved a Russian Ilyushin Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft, followed later by two Su-30MKI fighter jets leaving Kaliningrad airspace, a Russian exclave that neighbors Poland.

A third mission took place on April 17, when RAF pilots intercepted another Il-20M that was not communicating with air traffic control.

“Today was the third time in three days that NATO has scrambled RAF assets at Malbork,” a spokesperson for the UK’s Expeditionary Air Wing said after the incident.

“Once intercepted, we shadowed the aircraft to protect civilian air traffic in the immediate area.”

The British Typhoons are deployed under Operation Chessman, the UK’s contribution to NATO’s air policing efforts in the region. Swedish jets are also deployed in Poland.

NATO has three rotating air policing missions in Estonia, Lithuania, and Poland to monitor the alliance’s airspace.