Russian aircraft violated Lithuanian airspace – NATO fighter jets scrambled

On October 23, Russian aircraft violated Lithuanian airspace, reported to the Armed Forces of the Baltic country.

A Russian Su-30 fighter jet, which was probably conducting refueling training in the Kaliningrad region, and an Il-78 aircraft that was refueling, entered Lithuanian airspace at 700 meters and left after staying there for about 18 seconds, the report said.

The Lithuanian Air Force spotted Russian aircraft around 18:00 (the same time as in Kyiv) near the town of Kybartai, located on the border between Lithuania and the Kaliningrad region.

In response to the incident, two Eurofighter Typhoon fighters of the Spanish Air Force, which are carrying out the North Atlantic Alliance's air policing mission, were launched, the Lithuanian Armed Forces said.

"They [the planes] flew to the site of the violation and are currently patrolling the airspace in the area of the incident," the publication concludes.

• On September 19, Russian MiG-31 fighters violated Estonian airspace near Tallinn. In general, they were on Estonian territory about 12 minutes.
• On the same day, Russian fighters violated the security zone of the Polish company Petrobaltic's drilling platform in the Baltic Sea. More than a week before that, two dozen Russian UAVs violated Polish airspace.
• After the incident with Estonia, the Lithuanian defense minister recalled how in 2015 Turkey shot down a Russian airplane, when it violated the country's airspace.
• On October 15, Belgium's defense minister said that NATO states are discussing new rules on how to facilitate the downing of Russian military aircraft that violate the airspace of their member states.