05/02/2014: Danish fighter jets have arrived in Amari Air Base in Estonia for air policing duties over the Baltic states.
According to a Fox news story published April 30, 2014L
TALLINN, Estonia – NATO has opened its second Baltic air base in Estonia as part of the military alliance’s increased regional air policing mission during the Ukraine crisis.
Estonia’s military says four Danish fighter jets arrived at the Amari air base, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) southwest of the capital Tallinn on Wednesday.
The Royal Danish Air Force F-16 planes will patrol the skies of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for four months in coordination with NATO fighter jets stationed in Lithuania. After that, Germany will take over the rotational mission.
An AFP story added further details:
The aircraft and a supporting team of 60 people arrived at the Amari air base in the west of the Baltic state at a time when NATO is reinforcing its presence in the region to allay concerns triggered by the Ukraine crisis.
“Your arrival in Estonia and the opening of the Amari base to regular NATO flights increases the security of our region,” Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas said at a ceremony.
“But work on the security of Estonia and Europe is far from over. We are working to make our NATO allies’ stay in Estonia permanent.”
Until now the Western defense alliance’s sole Baltic air base was in Siauliai in northern Lithuania, Estonian defense forces spokesman Roland Murof said.
Credit Video: NATOCHANNEL:4/30/14
Recent RAF actions are described in the following excerpt from a piece published in The Daily Telegraph on May 2, 2014:
The British Defence secretary also warned Vladimir Putin not to breach a red line around Nato members as he visited British Typhoon fighter jets that have begun patrolling skies over the Baltic States.
Philip Hammond said Russia’s role in the Ukraine crisis showed Moscow “does not accept the norms of international behaviour” and hinted Britain may need to send more reinforcements to Eastern Europe.
He spoke as four RAF Typhoon fighters practised scrambling to intercept Russian fighters as they began a four month deployment at a Lithuanian air base, 50 miles from the Russian border.
The jets from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire joined Polish MiG-29s at Siauliai airbase, and will be on standby for the next four months.
The air policing mission is the RAF’s first in the region for ten years as Nato has trebled its Baltic air defences as tensions have escalated with Russia over eastern Ukraine.
Mr Hammond said: “I think President Putin does listen to what’s going on and watches very carefully the reaction that he is seeing.
“The way in which the Nato allies have responded, have provided additional forces, aircraft for Baltic air policing, additional troops for exercises does send a very clear signal about the red line around Nato nations.”
Video at the top of the story is from a March 26, 2014 story.