Turkish, Romanian warplanes conduct interception training for NATO mission

Turkish and Romanian F-16 fighter jets have participated in training exercises as a component of NATO's enhanced air policing mission.

"As part of NATO Enhanced Air Policing Block-64 mission, a press day was held in Romania, Fetesti Borcea Air Base. Around 50 press members attended the press day activity and also air-to-air shots were captured," Türkiye's Ministry of National Defence said Thursday on X.

In December, four Turkish F-16 fighter jets were deployed in Romania to participate in the mission until the end of March. The jets fly sorties alongside their Romanian colleagues to safeguard NATO airspace on the eastern flank.

The Turkish F-16s conducted training scrambles at Fetesti Air Base, simulating the alarm chain from fighter preparation to take-off for an intercept.

"Since 2014, Romania has hosted NATO enhanced Air Policing of fighter detachments from eight Allies and – now – Türkiye at its air bases near the Black Sea Coast,” Captain Cornel Pavel from the Romanian Defence Ministry was quoted as saying in a NATO statement.

"This has been a major contribution to NATO’s collective effort to show its commitment to collective deterrence and defence and the close cohesion among Allies," Pavel added.

Air policing is a peacetime mission that aims to preserve the security of Alliance airspace. It is a collective task and involves the continuous presence of fighter aircraft and crews, which are ready to react quickly to possible airspace violations, according to NATO.

As a part of the broad set of assurance measures introduced following Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, allies are providing additional assets to enhance air policing along NATO’s eastern borders, it added.

Military drill in Hungary

Türkiye took part in a joint NATO multinational military exercise called Adaptive Hussars-2023 in eastern Hungary from November 6 to 17.

The exercise involved NATO forces from Türkiye, Italy, Croatia, and the US.

The Turkish Armed Forces participated in water passage phases in Tiszaroff and airborne phases in Nyiregyhaza.

Adaptive Hussars-2023 is Hungary's largest military exercise in 30 years, aiming to boost defence capabilities and test civil-military cooperation.

Hungarian Defense Minister Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky emphasized the importance of peace and security in Europe, highlighting the role of a well-trained defence force in achieving this goal.