PHOTO F-35 fighter jets of Italy, sent to intercept a rapid incursion with a Su-24 bomber and a Su-27 aircraft, in the Baltic Sea
SU-27 fighter plane of Russian air forces. Kubinka, Russia, January 1, 2022. Photo source: album – Artem Alexandrovich -Stocktrek Images / Album / Profimedia
Two Italian F-35 fighting aircraft were mobilized from Estonia for the first time to intercept “Russian aircraft”, NATO's Air Command said, Wednesday News, Defensehere and Armyrecognition.
“The Italian Air Force, a detachment of the 32nd squadron from the ämari air base, is in maximum 24 -hour alert, demonstrating the alliance to protect the NATO airspace,” the command added.
Thus, two F-35 Lightning II fighter jets of the Italian air forces were sent on a mission from Estonia's air base on August 13 to intercept Russian aircraft approaching NATO airspace over the Baltic Sea, NATO's air command confirmed. The mission, the first in which the Italian aircraft of the fifth generation were used for such an operation in the Baltic Sea, took place less than 24 hours after Gripen Hungarian planes performed a similar mission.
According to NATO, Italian aircraft intercepted a Russian Bombardier Su-24 and a Su-27 fighter aircraft that flew without flight plans and without active transponents, a pattern that the alliance associated with the deliberate test of its anti-aircraft defense systems.
🚨 First Ever: Italian F-35s scramble from Estonia to Intercept Russian Jets Over the Baltic!
NATO's 'Air Policeing' Mission in Action-Quick Reaction Alert Jets at ämari Air Base Respond in Real-time.
Another Bold Step As Nato Extends Its Reach to Russia's Doorstep. pic.twitter.com/gf75b3ydjq
– War (@warsurveillance) August 13, 2025
The Su-27 aircraft wore signs associated with a regiment with the base in Kaliningrad, which placed it at a fast striking distance of the Baltic Air Police area.
The rapid lifting of the Italian hunting aircraft highlights the more and more intense traffic in the Baltic Sea air space, where NATO pilots are increasingly facing Russian aircraft, often without or very little communication. Such flights oblige the allied aircraft to react in a timely manner, which increases the pressure to maintain a constant state of preparation.
For Italy, the interception has shown that its F-35 aircraft, with their “stealth” profile (“invisible” aircraft), advanced sensors and network targeting systems, are now part of the first line of the NATO air police mission. Although these aircraft have been held in Eastern Europe, this was the first time they were called in action in the Baltic area.
The consecutive interventions of the Hungarian and Italian fighter aircraft indicate what NATO officials consider to be a sustained intensification of the Russian air activity, Moscow seeming to test the reaction time and the coordination of the Alliance.
