Action took place within the scope of NATO
The Portuguese Air Force’s F-16AM Fighting Falcon fighters, deployed in Estonia, were called in this Wednesday to intercept a Russian military transport aircraft, which was flying close to NATO airspace.
According to a NATO Air Command publication, the operation took place after an Ilyushin II-76 military cargo plane approached the Atlantic alliance’s area of responsibility.
Yesterday 🇵🇹 F-16s scrambled to identify a 🇷🇺 Ilyushin Il-76 Candid flying close to NATO airspace.
This marked the first Alpha Scramble for the 🇵🇹 detachment since taking over the NATO enhanced Air Policing mission at Ämari Air Base in 🇪🇪 from 🇮🇹
— NATO Air Command (@NATO_AIRCOM)
The interception began with a quick takeoff of Portuguese fighters, which flew to identify and monitor unknown, potentially sensitive traffic, which NATO calls an “Alpha Scramble”.
This is the first alert response given by Portuguese aircraft in that detachment, since the beginning of its rotation at Ämari Air Base, replacing the Italian Air Force detachment, according to NATO Air Command, cited by United24 Media.
The Portuguese contingent in Estonia is made up of four F-16AM fighters and around 95 military personnel mobilized to that air base, as part of the reinforcement of NATO’s air policing mission for 2026. During the time they are stationed there, Portuguese forces must remain in a high state of readiness and alert to conduct this type of mission, protecting the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
