GERMANY AND SPAIN ARE PREPARING FOR COMBINED AIR POLICING MISSIONS
Published by Diego Crotti. Nato Allied Air Command Source in ARMED FORCES NEWS · Saturday 27 Aug 2022
RAMSTEIN, Germany - Four Spanish Eurofighters landed at Ämari, Estonia, and joined the German Eurofighters currently supporting NATO's enhanced Air Policing mission in the Baltics. The Spanish jets support the close cooperation concept called Plug-and-Fight the German Air Force has initiated with other Eurofighter users like the Royal Air Force and the Italian Air Force
The combined work efforts in Spain and Germany have been very productive so far, and are being continued together here at Ämari in order to ensure the successful conduct of this iteration of Eurofighter plug-and-fight operations
The Spanish jets will be integrated into the operations of the German detachment that arrived in Estonia in August. Training sorties of German and Spanish Eurofighters will prepare both teams to conduct combined quick reaction alert operations by the beginning of September.
"The Spanish Air Force participates with personnel assigned to the 14th Wing mainly, with high level of preparation, professionalism, and responsibility, sharing maintenance techniques and materials, promoting the interoperability of this advanced weapons system used in Allied countries," said Major Miguel Ángel López García.
"After several months of preparation efforts within both Air Forces, the Luftwaffe is happy to welcome the jets and pilots from Spain in Ämari," said Lieutenant Colonel Georg Hummel, Commander of the German Eurofighter detachment. "The combined work efforts in Spain and Germany have been very productive so far, and are being continued together here at Ämari in order to ensure the successful conduct of this iteration of Eurofighter plug-and-fight operations. We are confident, that we will be able to achieve the goals set by our Air Chiefs for the integration of the Spanish assets into our running Air Policing mission in the next weeks. Our goal is to establish guidelines, procedures, and tactics to enable a quick activation of multi-national Eurofighter elements ready for NATO employments in the future," he concluded.
Combining fighter assets to conduct a multinational Air Policing mission is another step in further improving Alliance cohesion and interoperability. It increases the flexibility of national air forces and NATO's Combined Air Operations Centres to safeguard the NATO skies 24/7/365.
Story by Allied Air Command Public Affairs Office based on information provided by the German and Spanish air forces