On October 28 – November 3 detachment of the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic states were scrambled four times to intercept aircraft flying in violation of international aviation regulations.
On October 28 fighter aircraft of the NATO Baltic Air Policing Detachment were scrambled to intercept one IL-76 flying from the mainland of the Russian Federation to Kaliningrad via international airspace. It had no pre-filed flight plan, the onboard transponder was switched on, the crew was maintaining radio communication with the regional air traffic control centre.
On October 29 NATO fighter aircraft were scrambled to intercept assessed two SU-27 flying from Kaliningrad and back through international airspace. The aircraft returned to Kaliningrad before being identified. They had no flight plan, the onboard transponders were switched off, the crews were not maintaining radio communication.
On October 31 NATO Air Policing fighter jets were scrambled to identify an assessed SU-30. The aircraft was flying from Kaliningrad and back through international airspace. The identification was not successful. The aircraft had no flight plan, its onboard transponder was switched off, the crew was not maintaining radio communication.
On November 2 NATO fighter aircraft were scrambled to determine the nature of an identified aerial target breaching into Lithuania’s territory from Latvia. The target proved to be a sizable flock of birds.