Cloaked 'strong message' to Russia from Luftwaffe chief. Germany sent Eurofighter fighter jets and soldiers to Poland
Three Eurofighter jets of Tactical Squadron 71 “Richthofen” at Münster-Osnabrück Airport in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on October 9, 2025. PHOTO: Guido Kirchner / DPA / Profimedia
Germany has sent five Eurofighter fighter jets and about 150 troops to the Polish city of Malbork to help secure the country's airspace, the German air force said on Thursday, according to Reuters, which notes that Berlin's decision comes in response to Russian drone incursions in Poland in September.
Polish F-16 fighter jets, Dutch F-35 jets, Italian AWACS surveillance aircraft and NATO in-flight refueling machines took part in an operation to shoot down drones that entered Polish airspace in mid-September.
It was the first time a member of the Western military alliance openly fired on Russian equipment since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Moscow has denied responsibility for the fall incident.
Germany's Eurofighter multi-role fighter jets operate as part of NATO's Eastern Sentry mission and will remain stationed in Malbork, a city about 60 kilometers from Gdansk and 80 kilometers from the heavily armed Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, until March 2026, the Luftwaffe (German air force) said.
“With this mission, we are sending another strong message of support to our neighbor Poland and to NATO as a whole,” said the head of the German Air Force, Holger Neumann.
Germany has also sent Eurofighter jets to Romania as part of NATO's efforts to strengthen the alliance's eastern flank amid rising tensions with Russia.
