The Portuguese Air Force has assumed lead of the Baltic Air Policing mission. During the traditional ceremony at Šiauliai Airbase on May 2 a detachment of the Portuguese Air Force was handed over the symbolic key to the Baltic Airspace from the outgoing detachment of the Royal Danish Air Force.
“As the Portuguese F-16 detachment commander, I’m proud of being part of this united effort, aware of the great responsibility and 100% committed to this mission” Lieutenant-Colonel Afonso Gaiolas, Commander of the leading Portuguese detachment stated in his speech during the ceremony. His detachment consists of four F-16 fighter jets and a total of 84 personnel say NATO.
The commander of the outgoing Danish detachment, Lieutenant-Colonel John Kristensen, took the opportunity to thank his Lithuanian hosts for their support:
“The Lithuanian Air Force and all the personnel on the Airbase provided outstanding support to us” he said. Addressing his Airmen he added: “We have solved the mission with jets ready 100% of the time with only 54 people. That can only be done with dedicated and well trained personnel.”
Both Air Forces from Portugal and Spain are not new to the mission. During the fourteen-year history of Baltic Air Policing, the Portuguese Air Force deployed to Lithuania three times already in 2007, 2014 and 2016. The Spanish Air Force is contributing to the mission for the fifth time after two deployments to Šiauliai in 2006 and 2016 and after augmenting the mission twice out of Ämari, Estonia in 2015 and 2017.
Four Spanish Eurofighter Typhoon jets will augment the Portuguese F-16s during the current rotation. A third detachment from the French Air Force is going to take over an additional augmenting role from the Italian Air Force on May the 3rd in Ämari, Estonia.
Portugal has an air force? Wonders never cease
That’s the first time I’ve seen you post a stupid comment Levi. Of course they do! Might be small but they take it very seriously. I remember hundreds of years ago serving on a T12 frigate somewhere in the North Sea when the weather really got very rough. It was a real stinker. A number of European NATO ships were in company. Eventually all turned round and headed for port except the Dutch and Portuguese…
I am sure Putin’s Russia are going to be desperately frightened by 4x F16s that are 25+ years old being deployed to their border.
Still token gesture, not sure if the air policing duties would do anything but shot a few Russian aircraft down before they got destroyed.
As a realistic defence posture it is not very impressive.