INTEL REPORT: Having no dedicated fighters of their own, the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have been protected by NATO air policing assets since 2004. Alan Warnes spoke to those involved in a busy few months for the latest fighter rotations.
Two Baltic Air Policing (BAP) quick reaction alerts (QRAs) are manned by armed jets at Šiauliai (Lithuania) and Ämari (Estonia). They are not alone – Albania, Montenegro and Slovenia also rely on other NATO countries to defend their skies. The alliance’s most recent member, Montenegro, joined in June 2017 and a year later Italy and Greece began aerial patrols of the country.
