The past few days have seen unusually intense Russian air activity over the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea. Air activity intensified on December 6 and has continued during the first days of the week. No violations of Finnish airspace have been observed.
Most Russian packages have departed from bases within Russia’s mainland and headed towards the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, to return via the same general routing. The packages have contained fighters, bombers, and transport aircraft. Aircraft types identified include the Tu-95, Tu-22M, Su-34, Su-27, Su-24, and MiG-31 along with a range of transports.
Finland has stepped up the air policing of its airspace and adjusted its identification flight effort to meet the demands. The Air Force has launched F/A-18 Hornets to identify all significant targets.
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Press release, Image: UK Ministry of Defence