Feb 14 (Reuters) - Two Dutch F-35 fighters intercepted a formation of three Russian military aircraft near Poland and escorted them out, the Netherlands' defence ministry said in a statement late on Monday.
"The then unknown aircraft approached the Polish NATO area of responsibility from Kaliningrad," according to Reuters' translation of the ministry's statement.
Kaliningrad is a Russian Baltic coast enclave located between NATO and European Union members Poland and Lithuania.
"After identification, it turned out to be three aircraft: a Russian IL-20M Coot-A that was escorted by two Su-27 Flankers. The Dutch F-35s escorted the formation from a distance and handed over the escort to NATO partners."
The Il-20M Coot-A is NATO's reporting name for the Russian Ilyushin Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft while the Su-27 Flankers are NATO's reporting name for the Sukhoi Su-28 fighter aircraft.
Russia's defence ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for a comment.
The Netherlands' defence ministry said that eight Dutch F-35s are stationed in Poland for February and March.
Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne Editing by Matthew Lewis
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Kesshh on February 14th, 2023 at 01:52 UTC »
Don’t think Poland likes being threatened either…
progress18 on February 14th, 2023 at 01:34 UTC »
From the article:
This is a link to the Netherland's Defense Ministry's statement (you'll need to use Google Translate):
https://www.defensie.nl/actueel/nieuws/2023/02/13/nederlandse-f-35s-onderscheppen-vanuit-polen-drie-russische-vliegtuigen
Tashre on February 14th, 2023 at 01:31 UTC »
Russia is so far behind the times. The new in thing are balloons.