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Sweden Joins NATO’s Enhanced Air Policing Mission—Gripens Headed to Poland

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Vlad Litnarovych
Vlad Litnarovych
Author
Sweden Joins NATO’s Enhanced Air Policing Mission—Gripens Headed to Poland
Gripen fighter jets of the Hungarian Air Force paint the sky in the colors of the Hungarian flag during an air show as part of the celebrations marking the Hungarian national day on August 20, 2024, in Budapest. (Source: Getty Images)

Sweden will participate in NATO’s Enhanced Air Policing mission for the first time, deploying JAS 39 Gripen  fighter jets to Poland, Sweden’s Armed Forces announced on March 6.

Up to eight Swedish combat aircraft will operate from a Polish airbase in April and May, patrolling NATO’s northern surveillance zone to bolster the alliance’s defense and deterrence efforts.

Alongside the jets and pilots, Sweden will also send technical personnel to maintain the aircraft.

This marks the first time Swedish fighter jets will be stationed abroad as part of NATO’s air policing efforts.

The Enhanced Air Policing mission was launched in response to Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The Swedish Gripens will operate under the NATO Combined Air Operations Center in Uedem, Germany.

Beyond the air patrol mission, Sweden has also proposed deploying personnel to help protect a key logistics hub in southeastern Poland, which serves as a transit point for military and civilian aid to Ukraine.

The commitment includes a ground force of approximately 110 personnel, primarily from the Norrbotten Air Wing (Norrbottens flygflottilj), with additional reinforcements from other Swedish Air Force units.

Earlier, The Swedish government announced plans to provide Ukraine with air defense systems valued at approximately $113 million.

The military aid package is part of Sweden’s support for Ukraine on the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion. “On the anniversary, we can also announce the purchase of air defense systems totaling 1.2 billion Swedish kronor for transfer to Ukraine,” the officials wrote.

The package includes Robot 70 and Tridon Mk2 air defense systems, “The Tridon Mk2 can counter Russian mass attacks using simple drones and robots,” the officials stated.

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The Saab JAS 39 Gripen is a light single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft manufactured by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB. The Gripen has a delta wing and canard configuration with a relaxed stability design and fly-by-wire flight controls. Later aircraft are fully NATO interoperable. As of 2020, more than 271 Gripens of all models, A–F, have been delivered.