Britain’s defense ministry said the Typhoons will fly air-defense missions over Poland as part of Eastern Sentry, a NATO effort to reinforce the alliance’s eastern flank.
“Good news from the United Kingdom on the anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Polish and British pilots together again!” Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski wrote on X.
Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz thanked U.K. Defence Secretary John Healey and London for sending RAF jets. The deployment is “a clear signal of allied solidarity and a real strengthening of security in the region,” he said, adding: “Together we are stronger.”
Prime Minister Donald Tusk also weighed in on X: “Do not look for the enemy in the West. European allies did not fail in the moment of trial. The threat is the East and all those who try to break Euro-Atlantic unity.”
Poland’s airspace was repeatedly violated by Russian drones during the night of Sept. 9–10. Those posing a direct threat were shot down by Polish and allied aircraft, and—for the first time in modern Polish history—the Air Force used weapons in the country’s own airspace.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said on Friday the alliance is launching Eastern Sentry to bolster the eastern flank. The mission will include Danish F-16s, French Rafales, and German Eurofighters.
Sikorski’s message coincided with Battle of Britain commemorations. The air campaign began on July 10, 1940. Sept. 15, 1940, is widely seen as its turning point, when the Third Reich lost more than 60 aircraft and over 80 airmen. Polish pilots fought alongside the RAF in that victory.
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Source: PAP