Yesterday, April 29, It was confirmed that the Finnish Air Force will make available a detachment made up of its F/A-18 Hornet fighters for the NATO Air Protection Mission over Romania, stipulating a deployment that includes the period that begins on June 3 and ends on July 31. This could be reported by the Allied Air Command of the Atlantic alliance, signifying the first deployment of this class since the Scandinavian country became a full member of the organization.
The mission consists mainly of early warning deployments, air patrols under the command of NATO’s integrated air and missile defense, as well as exercises to improve the joint capabilities of allied air forces in the region. In that sense, the Finnish F/A-18 Hornet will work together with the Eurofighter Typhoon of the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and F-16 fighters of the Romanian Air Force.
Regarding the specific terms of the Finnish deployment, it is known that a unit composed of 100 troops and 8 F/A-18 Hornet fighter-bombers will be sent, of which the majority come from the Karelia Air Wing. As for its destination in Romania itself, it has been planned to be the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base, located near the city of Constanța, which will receive the Finnish contingent. In that sense, the sending of this contingent is intended to be a solid example of Finnish commitment to the Atlantic Alliance, which it joined on April 4, 2023.
In this regard, the commander of the Finnish Air Force, Major General Juha-Pekka Keränen, made the following statements: “The increased presence of air defense assets in the Black Sea region is part of NATO’s basic idea that all allies prepare to support each other in maintaining collective defense and deterrence (…) By participating in the Air Shielding mission for the first time, we are doing our part to strengthen NATO cohesion and improve interoperability with allies.”
For their part, the exercises that the Finnish F/A-18 Hornet pilots must carry out include the Ramstein Legacy 24 exercise, which will be coordinated by the NATO Allied Air Command and will take place in the skies of Romania and Bulgaria. Along these lines, Major General Keränen stated: “For the Finnish Air Force, the objectives of the deployment are to improve our integration into NATO airpower, further deepen bilateral cooperation with the Royal Air Force and develop our ability to operate from an allied air base.”
Image credits: Finnish Air Force
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