German jets intercept Russian surveillance plane near NATO's doorstep
Illustrative photo: German fighter jets intercept a Russian spy plane (Getty Images)
German Air Force fighters intercepted a Russian Il-20M aircraft in the airspace near Poland's northern border over the Baltic Sea, reports Bild.
The incident reportedly occurred on the morning of June 27. NATO radars detected an Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft at 9:02 a.m. local time (10:02 Kyiv time). It took off from Kaliningrad and was flying in international airspace with its transponders turned off and did not communicate.
At 9:32 a.m., two Eurofighter jets took off from the Lazy air base. They made visual contact with the Russian aircraft 100 kilometers off the German coast. It is alleged that the Il-20M then continued to move westward. 40 km from the island of Usedom, the plane changed its course and headed north. It did not violate German airspace.
According to Bild, since the beginning of the year, NATO fighter jets have been alerted nine times due to the appearance of Russian aircraft.
Intrusion of Russian aircraft into NATO airspace
There has been a recent increase in cases of Russian aircraft intruding into the airspace of NATO member states.
For example, in May, fighter jets intercepted a Russian Su-24 performing dangerous maneuvers near the Polish border.
NATO aircraft were also scrambled because a Russian Su-35 fighter jet violated Estonian airspace. It happened near the Juminda Peninsula.
In June, British Royal Air Force fighters intercepted a Russian reconnaissance plane over the Baltic Sea that had invaded Polish airspace.
