RAF fighter jets intercept Russian aircraft flying close to Nato airspace

Belfast Telegraph - 20/04
RAF fighter jets have intercepted two Russian aircraft flying close to Nato airspace over the Baltic Sea.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said two RAF Typhoons were scrambled from Malbork Air Base in Poland on Tuesday to intercept a Russian Ilyushin Il-20M “Coot-A” intelligence aircraft.

On Thursday, another two Typhoons were scrambled from the base to intercept an unknown aircraft leaving Kaliningrad air space close to Nato airspace.

The MoD said on Sunday that the intercepts mark the RAF’s first scramble as part of Operation Chessman and come weeks after the aircraft arrived in eastern Poland to begin deployment alongside Sweden in defence of Nato’s eastern flank.

Interception in aviation terms refers to when one aircraft, typically a military one, approaches another for the purpose of identification or intervent...
[Short citation of 8% of the original article]