NATO mobilized the largest presence of allied air power so far this year during two training missions between the Baltic states and Romania.
Nato carried it out 4 and 5 March 2026 an extensive military air exercise that brought together forces from several allied countries along the alliance’s eastern flank. The operations were part of the initiative Eastern Sentrywhich is led by Allied Air Command (AIRCOM)with the aim of strengthening air defense and demonstrating the joint ability to respond to potential threats.
According to the alliance, this was it largest engagement of allied air power during the year within the framework of operations of the type Flexible Deterrent Option (FDO)which are carefully planned deterrence activities aimed at demonstrating unity and military preparedness.
C-A2AD training in Romania
The first mission was carried out 4 mars near Mihail Kogălniceanu-flygbasen in Romania. The exercise focused on Counter Anti-Access/Area Denial (C-A2AD)-operations, aimed at training allied forces in neutralizing enemy air defense systems and ensuring operational freedom in the airspace.
The following aircraft participated in the mission:
- Mirage 2000D from France
- Eurofighter Typhoon from Germany
- F/A-18 Hornet from Spain
- F-16 from Romania
Germany currently has a detachment at the Romanian base to support NATO enhanced air policing missionswhile Spain uses the site to practice the concept Agile Combat Employment (ACE)which means more dispersed and flexible flight operations.
The mission also included support aircraft, including one French A330 MRTT and one Spanish A400M configured for air refueling. Romanian ground-based systems participated by providing realistic threat scenarios.
The entire operation was coordinated by NATO Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) i Torrejón in Spain.
Multi-domain exercise in the Baltic Sea area
The next day, the 5 marsthe focus of operations shifted to northern Europe and included the area from Baltic Sea to Finland. The exercise used the concept F2T2 (Find, Fix, Track and Target)which involves locating, identifying, tracking and neutralizing a target in a complex operational environment.
The mission gathered military resources from eight NATO countries and integrated capabilities from multiple domains:
- air combat forces
- ground-based systems
- cyber capability
- space resources
Among the participating resources were:
- Mirage 2000D from France
- F/A-18 Hornet from Finland
- A330 MRTT refueling aircraft from France and the multinational MRTT unit
Air control and combat command centers from Poland, Estonia and Finland provided ground-based command and control, while ground-based air defense systems from Estonia, Great Britain and the United States also participated in the training.
Canadian Joint Operations Command contributed capacity for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR).
The mission was coordinated by NATO CAOC in Uedem in Germanywhich is responsible for the control of the airspace in the northern region.
NATO’s new air defense strategy
The initiative Eastern Sentry is part of NATO’s enhanced surveillance activity called enhanced Vigilance Activity (eVA) and represents a new model for the alliance’s air defense.
Rather than relying solely on fixed bases or permanent patrols, the concept builds on a dynamic and distributed postureenabling air combat forces to move quickly along the entire eastern flank — from the Baltic States and Poland to the Black Sea.
According to NATO, this approach is increasing situational awarenessimproves coordination between allies and strengthens the ability to quickly respond to new threats.
The two assignments that were carried out in March mainly aimed to:
- increase interoperability between allied forces
- improve operational tactics and procedures
- integrate multi-domain operations in complex scenarios
Through this, the alliance tries to strengthen its air and robotic defense readiness and ensure continuous protection of member states’ airspace.
Source and images: Nato. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editors.
