The Diplomat
The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, bade farewell yesterday at the Torrejón Air Base (Madrid) to the personnel of the Tactical Air Detachment ‘Vilkas’ who will participate for the next four months in NATO’s Baltic Air Police mission in Lithuania.
“Once again our Armed Forces, the Air and Space Army, are always on the front line. For me it is a satisfaction and a pride to see them here, and their families too,” declared Minister Robles during the farewell of the 150 men and women of the Air Force who are going to participate in the Baltic Air Police (BAP) deterrent mission of NATO.
The BAP mission, one of the most important carried out for the collective defense of NATO and in which Spain has been one of the countries with the greatest presence, turns 20 this week, as recalled by the Ministry of Defense.
The DAT ‘Vilkas’ is a large detachment, made up mainly of 150 airmen from the 12th Wing and 15th Wing (along with personnel from various EA units) and eight F-18 aircraft. They will be joined by an A400 from the 31st Wing, as well as aviators from the Armament and Experimentation Logistics Center to help with electronic warfare, which will bring the detachment up to almost 190 troops. During the four months of the mission, it will be located at the Siauliai Air Base, in Lithuania, 180 kilometers from the capital, Vilnius.
The minister did not ignore the difficulty of the mission they face due to the global geopolitical context, but recalled that “they are great professionals” and was convinced that “they are going to leave the Spanish flag very high”, because “when you are There in the missions, what they are doing is contributing to making Spain a bigger country, but above all contributing to peace in the world.”
Lieutenant Colonel Pablo Estrada, head of the DAT, thanked the minister for her support and presence “which reaffirms the importance of the mission, to which we are happy and proud knowing that we are going to do it well.”
Since 2004, NATO has been developing Air Police missions in the Baltic to make up for the lack of the three Baltic States, which do not have an Air Force with this capacity. Spain has participated and led this mission on several occasions. In 2014, after the annexation of Crimea by Russia, a second Air Police presence was established at Ämari Air Base (Estonia), which also has a Spanish presence.
