At the height of about 10,000 meters above eastern Poland, the crew of the NATO scouting planes carefully accompanies every possible sign of air threats. Officers from six different countries are focused on the screens, seeking any indications that Russian planes could disrupt the alliance boundaries.
The threat has become a reality on Friday, when two Russian combat planes hurt Estonian airspace, staying inside as much as 12 minutes. NATO reacted immediately – the combat planes were raised into the air, and the incident caused concern throughout Europe.
Despite the currently in a quieter sky, caution is still at the highest level.
– If there is any threat from NATO, our goal is to find out as soon as possible – said Lieutenant Colonel Mike Belizaire, the German officer, during the exclusive flight to which AFP journalists attended the AFP journalists.
The violation of Estonian airspace is only the last in a series of incidents that increase fear in order for the war in Ukraine to pass through the NATO borders. Just a few days ago, NATO combat planes first collapsed Russian drones above Poland – an union unprecedented event.
In response to increasing threats, the NATO commander ordered a new mission called “Eastern Sentry”, with the aim of further empowering the East Wing of the Alliance, which has already been reinforced after Russian invasion of Ukraine 2022. years. Years.
French and German airplanes already over Polish
– Our mission in Poland has been lasting for several years, but what happened these days reminds us all of us that things can change overnight. That is why we are here today – to watch the situation videously and protect NATO Heaven – said Captain Commander Joel, the main pilot of the scout aircraft, which only uses a name for security reasons.
Face of eight hours, from the base in Germany, and through east Poland, he was the first to be performed within the new “Eastern Sentry” mission with the help of NATO’s AWACS airplanes known as “Heaven”. Radars on these airplanes can monitor movement in a radius of about 500 kilometers, including parts of the territory of Belarus and the Russian region Kaliningrad.
Drons – New challenge for expensive planes and systems
The surveillance operator from the American Aeronautics, Aaron Peace, says he takes less than 30 seconds to estimate whether an unknown object on the radar represents a threat. However, omnipresent drones – especially smaller and cheaper models used in Ukraine – represent a special challenge.
– Awacs is designed to track airplanes flying fast and high. The drones are smaller and slower, so it is harder to identify them. But – we can see them, “Sergeant Peace says.
In Poland,, for example, were used F-35 aircraft with great value missiles to break cheap drones – which caused questions about the cost-effectiveness of such a strategy.
An unnamed NATO official pointed out that it is intensively working to develop “new and more efficient anti-dron methods”, adding more information on specific alliance plans in the coming weeks.
(Vijesti.ba)
