RAMSTEIN, Germany – During his trip to the Baltic States, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) General Tod D. Wolters visited Ämari Air Base March 30, 2021 to meet with the Estonian Minister of Defence Kalle Laanet, Chief of Defence Lieutenant General Martin Herem and the German Air Force Detachment stationed there.
During his exchanges with leaders, General Wolters recognized Estonia’s contributions to NATO’s readiness as a host to NATO’s enhanced Air Policing mission and NATO’s enhanced Forward Presence battle group, as well as support to the NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Center of Excellence.
The outstanding work that the Air Policing Detachment here does is a demonstration of NATO’s commitment and highlights the great importance of security in the Baltic Region
“As we evolve and adapt to meet new security challenges; these missions seek to ensure airspace safety, protection and reassure the Alliance by maintaining continuous 24/7 air policing,” said General Wolters. “The outstanding work that the Air Policing Detachment here does is a demonstration of NATO’s commitment and highlights the great importance of security in the Baltic Region,” he added.
Following his engagements with political and military leadership, General Wolters received hands-on introductions to the Typhoon fighter aircraft from the German detachment commander Lieutenant Colonel Sören Richter.
“We are proud to present our capabilities to senior NATO leadership,” said Lieutenant Colonel Richter. “German Eurofighter Typhoons have become a familiar sight in Estonian skies – since the introduction of NATO assurance measures and the opening of Ämari Air Base for enhanced Air Policing we have deployed here once a year.”
NATO’s two fighter detachments at Ämari and Šiauliai in Lithuania have played an integral role providing the Alliance enduring air policing capability in the Baltic region. The collective Allied air-policing mission across all of Europe is overseen by Allied Air Command via the Combined Air Operations Centres Uedem in the north and Torrejón in the south.