British fighters in the Polish sky. This is a short-term combat flight

Royal Air Force (RAF) fighters patrolled the sky over Poland on the night from Monday to Tuesday, the British website UK Defense Journal reported. This was confirmed by a NATO representative, saying that it was part of a mission aimed at preventing further airspace violations by Russia.

The portal, citing flight tracking data, reported that British Typhoon fighters and the Voyager air tanker took off from RAF Coningsby late on Monday evening and headed east. The air defense patrol reached the eastern border of Poland. He stayed here for a few hours before returning to the UK early on Tuesday morning.

According to the editorial team, this was just one of many short-term sorties as part of NATO's Operation Eastern Sentry that have taken place in recent weeks.

The UK Defense Journal confirmed the participation of British aircraft with NATO representatives.

This mission is part of the Alliance's ongoing efforts to prevent further (airspace – PAP) violations following a series of Russian maneuvers along the border, including (instances of) (Russian) drones crossing Polish territory and intercepting them over the Baltic Sea, a NATO source said.

As the portal noted, “the latest flight of British combat aircraft proves constant readiness to quickly support allies.”

NATO launched the Eastern Guard mission on September 13 to strengthen the Alliance's eastern flank. The operation will include, among others: Danish F-16 fighters, French Rafale and German Eurofighters.

NATO's decision is the result of what happened on the night of September 9-10, i.e. the intrusion of Russian drones into Polish airspace. At the meeting of the North Atlantic Council, the Allies discussed the situation in the light of Poland's request for consultations under Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty.

From London Marta Zabłocka (PAP)

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