F-16 fighters from the Polish Air Force and Rafale B jets from the French Air and Space Force intercepted, on April 8, 2026, a Russian Ilyushin Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft on a mission over the Baltic Sea, in another episode of rising air tensions in the region.
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NATO conducts largest Allied air exercise of the year from the Baltic to the Black Sea
NATO mobilized the largest Allied airpower presence recorded this year in two training missions carried out between the Baltic states and Romania.
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F-35 Dutch Fighter Receives Mark for Shooting Down Russian Drone Over Poland
First confirmed destruction of a Russian drone by an F-35 occurred during a NATO mission over Poland
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Hungarian Gripen Fighters Intercept Russian Aircraft Near NATO Airspace Over the Baltic Sea
Hungarian JAS 39 Gripen fighters, deployed for NATO’s Air Policing mission in Lithuania, intercepted on September 25 a formation of Russian military aircraft approaching allied airspace over the Baltic Sea, the alliance said in a statement.
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Belgium Accelerates F-35 Delivery to Free Up F-16s for Ukraine
U.S. manufacturer Lockheed Martin has completed the production of nine F-35 Lightning II fighter jets for the Belgian Air Component, according to information released by the Belgian Ministry of Defense. The ninth jet in the series marks a logistical milestone: it will be the first to be delivered directly to Belgian soil.
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