Turkey will deploy five F-16 fighter jets and 76 military personnel to Estonia from August through November for NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Sunday.
The Turkish contingent will operate from Ämari Air Base, helping protect the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania at a time of heightened security concerns along NATO’s eastern flank following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The deployment will be drawn from the 181st Jet Squadron, known as the Pars Squadron, based at the 8th Main Jet Base Command in the southeastern Turkish province of Diyarbakır.
Turkey will replace a Portuguese contingent of four F-16s and up to 95 staff whose deployment at Ämari runs from April 1 through July 31.
The Turkish aircraft will remain on round-the-clock alert to respond rapidly to unidentified aircraft, possible airspace violations and other incidents requiring NATO intervention.
Anadolu documented the squadron’s final preparations at the Diyarbakır base before its departure for Estonia.
Lt. Col. Özdemir, commander of the Pars Squadron, described air policing as a peacetime air defense mission designed to protect NATO airspace.
“This mission is of great strategic importance to the defense of NATO’s eastern flank,” Özdemir said.
He said the squadron would maintain a round-the-clock quick reaction alert against airspace violations and unidentified aircraft and conduct joint missions with other NATO members.
Özdemir said the deployment would also strengthen Turkey’s deterrence and its ability to operate alongside allied forces.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania do not maintain fighter aircraft capable of continuously policing their airspace, leaving NATO members with the necessary capabilities to carry out the mission on a rotating basis.
First Lt. Özmen, one of the squadron’s pilots, said the deployment was the result of intensive training and coordinated work by pilots, maintenance crews, control-tower staff, planning officers and support personnel.
“A fighter jet taking off is not the achievement of the pilot alone,” Özmen said. “Behind it are maintenance crews working day and night, tower personnel, planning officers and support staff, all showing tremendous dedication and teamwork.”
NATO launched the Baltic Air Policing mission in 2004 after Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania joined the alliance. Participating aircraft have traditionally operated from Šiauliai Air Base in Lithuania, with Ämari added in 2014. NATO aircraft have also been able to operate from Latvia’s Lielvārde Air Base since 2024.
Turkey previously deployed four F-16s to Šiauliai in 2006 for a four-month Baltic Air Policing rotation.
More recently, the Turkish Air Force carried out enhanced air policing deployments in Poland from July 6 to September 15, 2021 and in Romania from November 30, 2023, to April 2, 2024.
Following the Estonia rotation, Turkey is also expected to assume a planned NATO air policing assignment in Romania from December 2026 through March 2027.