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Four Mirage F-1 fighter jets of the French air force were scheduled to land in the Lithuanian air base near Siauliai on Friday to take over the NATO air policing mission in the Baltic states.
France to take over Baltic air policing duties
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The fighter jets and crews to patrol the airspace above Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia come from the Mont De Marsan air base of the French air force, the Lithuanian Defense Ministry said. The new rotation is the fourth time for France to take part in Baltic air policing with its air assets and personnel.
The French contingent will replace Danish aviators, who have been guarding the Baltic skies since Jan. 1.
As the three Baltic nations have no air assets of their own to perform air policing, teams deployed by other NATO member states have been performing the function since the accession of the Baltic countries to the alliance in 2004. The air forces of 14 NATO countries have served shifts in the mission, which operates out of the Zokniai air base near Siauliai, northern Lithuania.