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ŠIAULIAI, Lithuania – In the morning of February 21, 2024, two French Mirage 2000-5 took off from Šiauliai Air Base under NATO orders to conduct a visual identification of a Russian Il-78 that was flying over international waters off Estonia's Baltic Sea coast. 

Allied detachments have seamlessly executed the enduring defensive mission safeguarding the Baltic NATO members for the last 20 years 

NATO air controllers observed the track of the Russian four-engine air-to-air refueling aircraft flying out of the Kaliningrad exclave with a northerly heading and ordered the French Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets to launch and conduct the identification to establish facts of the flight.

French Mirage 2000-5 taxies at Šiauliai Air Base ready to scramble for an intercept on February 21, 2024. Photo by French Air and Space Force.

French Mirage 2000-5 takes to the skies for a NATO Baltic Air Policing sortie on February 21, 2024. Photo by French Air and Space Force.

Off the Estonian Baltic  Sea coast, the French Mirage 2000-5 escorting a Russian Il-78 Midas tanker aircraft. Photo by French Air and Space Force.

French Mirage 2000-5 shutting engine down after the visual identification mission at Šiauliai Air Base. Photo by French Air and Space Force.

NATO and the Allies collectively protect the airspace above all member Nations. Alert scrambles and intercepts like this one are regularly conducted under Baltic Air Policing and demonstrate permanent situational awareness and readiness to deter and if necessary defend every inch of NATO territory.

At Šiauliai, French fighter pilots together with their Belgian colleagues currently ensure Baltic Air Policing over Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Allied detachments have seamlessly executed the enduring defensive mission for the last 20 years underscoring NATO cohesion and solidarity.