First Live Deployment in the Baltic Region

The first live deployment of the Hungarian Gripens happened one week after taking over the Baltic Air Policing service with the HDF Baltic Armed Air Defence Standby Sub-unit. The Hungarian fighter aircraft took off on 8 August 2025 due to unidentified aircraft. The Gripens intercepted and identified aircraft – which did not establish radio connection with the air traffic control, did not have a flight plan and did not use transponders – at an 11,000 m altitude, following international procedures, over the Baltic Sea at 11:26, local time. Therefore, the NATO Joint Air Command Centre in Germany ordered the Alpha alert. Following the interception and the identification, the Gripens returned to their base in Lithuania.

The Hungarian Defence Forces are carrying out the Baltic Air Policing for four months as of 1 August 2025, with 80 servicemembers and four JAS-39 Gripen fighter aircraft, as a leading nation, together with Spain and Italy, under NATO command.

Since the NATO accession of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in 2004, allied nations have been guaranteeing air policing for the three countries in four-month turns, in the name of collective defence. The HDF Baltic Armed Air Defence Standby Sub-unit carries out its tasks as the 69th BAP rotation, stationed at the Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania. After 2015, 2019 and 2022, Hungary is taking part in the mission for the fourth time.