NATO fighter jets intercepted a Russian spy plane over the Baltic Sea on Tuesday, highlighting escalating East-West tensions amid fears of broader conflict. The encounter involved Polish MiG-29s scrambling to shadow an Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft, ensuring it veered clear of allied airspace without incident.
The aircraft, operating under NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, successfully engaged the aircraft. According to Poland’s Operational Command of the Armed Forces, the two fighters jets of the Polish Air Force “successfully intercepted, visually identified, and escorted a Russian Federation aircraft out of the area of responsibility, which was flying over the Baltic Sea”.
The target was an Il-20 reconnaissance plane, a Soviet-era signals intelligence gatherer. The statement continued: “Polish fighters intercepted the Il-20 aircraft carrying out a reconnaissance mission in international airspace, without a filed flight plan and with the transponder turned off. The machine did not violate Polish airspace.”
No borders were crossed, but the unannounced flight will undoubtedly have worried NATO chiefs alarms. The statement added: “Thanks to high combat readiness, pilots’ professionalism, and the efficient functioning of the air defence system, the actions were carried out quickly, effectively, and safely.”
The incident fits a pattern of provocative Russian flights testing NATO resolve. Just days earlier, on October 23, a Russian Su-30 fighter and Il-78 tanker violated Lithuanian airspace for about 700 metres, prompting Spanish Eurofighter Typhoons to scramble under NATO’s mission. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda called it a “cruel breach of international law”.
Earlier in the month, NATO jets launched multiple times to intercept Russian aircraft heading to Kaliningrad, Russia’s Baltic exclave. Between October 6 and 12, the alliance conducted six alert scrambles for flights including An-12 transports and an An-72 accompanied by Su-30s and MiG-31s, plus Su-35 and Su-24MR jets – many operating without transponders or flight plans, breaching air safety rules.
On September 26, Hungarian Gripen jets intercepted five Russian fighters over the Baltic. Days before, on September 19, three MiG-31s pierced Estonian airspace for 12 minutes in a “brazen” incursion, met by Italian F-35s. German Eurofighters shadowed an Il-20M spy plane on September 21, joined by Swedish Gripens, after it entered neutral airspace without clearance.
NATO recorded more than 300 such intercepts in 2023, with 2025 seeing a surge amid Ukraine’s war and Russia’s hybrid tactics. These “calibrated provocations” risk miscalculation, especially near Kaliningrad’s nuclear assets.
Earlier patterns persist: in June, British Typhoons intercepted a Russian aircraft over the Baltic. April saw RAF Typhoons twice shadow an Il-20M during enhanced policing in Poland.
These near-daily scrambles reflect a “new normal” of aerial brinkmanship, where each encounter probes alliance weaknesses without full escalation.
Poland vows vigilance. The command stated: “Protecting Polish skies is not only a duty but a daily mission of WojskoPolskie soldiers, who with full commitment guard the security of our country.”
Officials said: “The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland remain in constant readiness to respond to every threat and protect the sovereignty of Polish airspace.”