Brussels 16.06.2025 The Portuguese Air Force is securing the skies over and around Estonia as part of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission.
Fighter pilots and aircrew arrived at Ämari Air Base in late May, replacing an earlier Portuguese detachment that began its duties in April and assuming responsibility for their four F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets. That deployment was the first time Portuguese fighters have operated out of Estonia.

Hotpit Refuelling in Action!

140 Expeditionary Air Wing 🇬🇧 ground crews deployed at Ämari Air Base have been training our @NATO allies from Portugal 🇵🇹 and Estonia 🇪🇪 to hotpit refuel their Typhoons, a dynamic refuelling method with engines still running!@fap_pt. pic.twitter.com/Uh9Dqu7C6k

— Royal Air Force (@RoyalAirForce) May 20, 2025

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Because the Baltic States – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – lack supersonic fighters capable of conducting interceptions, NATO Allies provide jets on a rotating basis. Based in Lithuania with an additional detachment in Estonia, the Baltic Air Policing mission is on standby to respond to air traffic anomalies. These can be civilian aircraft that have lost communication with air traffic controllers, or Russian military aircraft that refuse to identify themselves or respond to hails.

NATO Air Policing is a peacetime mission that is carried out 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.