Air Policing Jamboree

Seven NATO member air forces participated in the second Baltic air sovereignty training event that took place April 7 in the skies over northern Europe. Joining US Air Forces in Europe assets and personnel were airmen and aircraft from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland. Activities during the one-day event included air command and control training and practicing intercepts, cross-border air operations, and air-to-air refueling. Participating aircraft also performed fly-bys of the Baltic nations’ capitals as a show of NATO presence and solidarity with the Baltic states. As part of this, two USAF F-16s from the 22nd Fighter Squadron at Spangdahlem AB, Germany, flew over the Estonian capital of Tallinn. In 2004, NATO began rotational deployments of air assets to protect the airspace of member states Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, since they do not have their own robust air defense capabilities. The inaugural BAST-E took place last October. (Ramstein report by Maj. Cristin Marposon)