The Šiauliai Air Base of the Lithuanian Air Force is on Friday hosting a welcome ceremony for four Danish fighter jets joining NATO's Baltic air policing mission.
The Royal Danish Air Force's four additional F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter aircraft will reinforce the Polish and Belgian contingents that have been patrolling the Baltic skies with eight F-16 fighter jets since December.
“The Royal Danish Air Force will be conducting the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic states for the ninth time. The Danish crew will number approx. 80 service members – pilots, engineers, paramedics, support elements, specialists of communications and other personnel,” the Lithuanian Defence Ministry said in a press release earlier this week.
“NATO allies made the decision to send an augmentation detachment to the NATO Air Policing Mission once again in the context of Russia further raising tensions along Ukraine’s borders and with regard to the necessity to strengthen the security of NATO's eastern allies, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, and to ensure deterrence,” it said.
The mission has also been reinforced by US F-15 fighter jets that landed at Estonia's Amari Air Base on Wednesday.
NATO member countries have taken turns safeguarding Baltic airspace since Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania joined the Alliance back in 2004.
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