The aircraft, a pair of F-35, made nearly ten circles over the border town of Kirkenes and the Varanger fjord before returning west. The contrail afterwards blew east into Russian airspace over the Pechenga area in Murmansk region.
”I can confirm that there are two F-35 fighter jets currently conducting completely normal training, including over Finnmark,” says spokesperson for the Norwegian Air Force, Major Stian Roen to the Barents Observer. Roen underlines that training is in accordance with approved procedures and regulations. […]
In the second half of June, Finland hosted the Atlantic Trident fighter jet exercise, with participating aircraft from the United States, United Kingdom and France. The planes were then training along Finland’s eastern border and the exercise included Rovaniemi airbase in Lapland.
A main reason for the Norwegian Air Force to fly more often over the Varanger area is to show that Norway has deterrence and is ready to defend all of its airspace amid higher tensions with Russia. […]
Although the Norwegian government in May said it would ease the country’s self-imposed restrictions on NATO training in East-Finnmark region, there are still no allied weapons carrying aircraft so close to the Kola Peninsula. Läs artikel