&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Russian warplanes trigger first Finland-Sweden joint operation in Baltic – What happened?")
Finland and Sweden on Friday (Sep 25) said that they had scrambled fighter jets to intercept and identify Russian military aircraft in international airspace over the Gulf of Finland. The operation marked the first such joint mission by the two Nordic nations. The Finnish Air Force said the two countries deployed Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) aircraft on Thursday (Sep 24) after Russian military planes were detected.
The Russian detachment included a Tu-134 transport aircraft, along with MiG-31 and Su-30 fighter jets, according to the Finnish military. Finnish and Swedish aircraft tracked and identified the Russian group before completing the operation. The mission was described by Finland as the first joint operational “identification mission” conducted by the two air forces.
Baltic Sea tensions remain high
The operation comes as security concerns have intensified across the Baltic Sea region following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The region has witnessed incidents involving airspace violations, drone sightings and gas pipeline outages, prompting increased vigilance among NATO members.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said the joint operation demonstrated the level of coordination developed between the two countries.
“It is a concrete expression of the readiness and trust we have built together – and an expression of the strength in the Nordic, Nordic-Baltic, and broader NATO cooperation in our part of the world,” Kristersson wrote on X.
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He added: “The Baltic Sea has never been as vulnerable as it is now – but it has also never been better protected than it is right now.”
Russian Mi-8 helicopter breaches Polish airspace
The incident happened a day after Poland said that a Russian military helicopter briefly violated its airspace on Wednesday (Sep 23). It added that in response, NATO fighter jets were scrambled, while ground forces remained on alert. Polish Army Operational Command said that the Mi-8 aircraft entered Polish airspace from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and stayed for 42 seconds. It penetrated the country’s airspace to a depth of about 300 metres (328 yards). The Mi-8 helicopter crossed into Polish airspace north of the town of Braniewo at around 11:08 am local time. Polish radar systems tracked its movement throughout the incident.
