Over the past three and a half months, Hungary’s JAS-39C Gripen fighter jets have responded to 20 live ‘ALFA’ alerts while patrolling Baltic airspace under NATO’s Baltic Air Policing (BAP) mission, Lieutenant Colonel Péter Tősér, commander of the Hungarian Air Defence Quick Reaction Alert Unit, announced during a press visit to the Siauliai Air Base in Lithuania.
Hungary has been leading the current rotation of the BAP mission since 1 August, alongside Spanish and Italian forces, deploying four aircraft and a contingent of 80 personnel until 1 December. The mission, which has operated in four-month rotations since 2004, protects the skies of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, nations that lack their own fighter fleets. This marks Hungary’s fourth BAP deployment since 2015 and its second since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.
In addition to the 20 real scrambles, Hungarian pilots completed 76 training interceptions, 53 training flights, and a total of 300 take-offs amounting to 365 flight hours. Their task known as Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) duty requires them to take off within 15 minutes to identify unidentified aircraft approaching or entering NATO airspace.
Most alerts were triggered by Russian aircraft—including Il-20 reconnaissance planes, Su-24, Su-30, Su-35, and MiG-31 fighters—flying without flight plans, radio contact, or active transponders between St Petersburg and Kaliningrad. NATO pilots, Tősér said, avoid escalation and maintain safe distances, as radar systems can identify aircraft type from up to 10 miles away.
The Hungarian contingent has also trained in drone interception, escorted US B-52 bombers, and participated in joint air combat exercises with French Rafales, American F-35s, and Eurofighters. Their personnel underwent maritime survival training as part of the mission’s readiness programme.
Reconnaissance officer Captain Pál Farkas noted that the Baltic Sea remains a vital Russian trade route, with frequent navigation errors and occasional airspace violations. He cited several incidents, including three MiG-31s breaching Estonian airspace on 22 September and a Su-30 and tanker aircraft drifting into Lithuanian airspace on 30 September during aerial refuelling.
He also pointed to ongoing issues with Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ of oil tankers, including a case last April when a Russian Su-30 prevented Estonian authorities from boarding one of these ships. In addition, 30 to 40 smuggling balloons launched daily from Belarus into Lithuania appear on radar, while one of the largest recent incidents occurred on 9 September, when 20 to 30 Russian drones entered Polish airspace, prompting NATO to shoot down several of them for the first time in its history.
Logistics officer Lieutenant Colonel Norbert Szentesi explained that preparations for the mission began in November 2024, involving the transport of 60 tons of equipment to Lithuania using AN-124 and C-17 transport aircraft. Equipment redeployment is expected to conclude by 5 December.
Beyond their operational duties, Hungarian personnel have engaged in community outreach, raising 1,500 euros for a local orphanage, participating in a peace run, and joining a football tournament with other BAP contingents.
Currently, Hungarian and Spanish forces operate from Siauliai, while Italian aircraft are stationed at Estonia’s Ämari Air Base. Hungary is simultaneously contributing to NATO air policing missions in Croatia, Slovakia, and Slovenia, countries that either lack fighter jets or are awaiting replacements for their aging fleets.
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