Polish Jet Fighters Intercept Russian Reconnaissance Aircraft Over the Baltic Sea Again
This week, Polish military pilots once again demonstrated their readiness by intercepting Russian reconnaissance aircraft over the Baltic Sea.
According to Polish Minister of National Defense, Vladyslav Koshyniak-Kamisz, the incident occurred on Thursday, October 30, during a press conference in the town of Kartuzy.
He stated that Polish MiG-29 fighters were scrambled to intercept a Russian reconnaissance plane conducting flights in international airspace without submitting a flight plan and with their transponder turned off.
This is not the first such incident in recent days; on Tuesday, October 28, Polish MiG-29s intercepted a Russian Ilyushin Il-20, which also carried out reconnaissance missions in international airspace.
Polish military sources confirmed that the Il-20 failed to submit a flight plan and had its transponder disabled, complicating identification efforts.
Experts emphasize that these provocation attempts by Russia aim to create regional instability and demonstrate Moscow’s intent to test NATO’s response protocols.
NATO Allied Commander General Aleksus Grinkevich has previously stated that decisive NATO responses to such intrusions have caused Russia to act more cautiously, but the threat remains.
In light of ongoing tensions and increased Russian activity, NATO allies are urged to strengthen surveillance and readiness levels to deter future provocations and maintain regional security.