RAF F-35Bs to police NATO skies in Iceland
August 9, 2024
Four British Royal Air Force F-35Bs and 180 personnel have started arriving in Iceland to take part in a two month NATO air policing mission. This is the first time that RAF F-35Bs will have taken part in a NATO air policing mission, although Italian F-35As were the first to conduct NATO Air Policing (also in Iceland, during 2019), and two Italian F-35Bs augmented four F-35As during a 2022 Icelandic Air Policing detachment, which provided an opportunity for early F-35B cold climate training.
Up until now, all UK contributions to NATO air policing missions have been undertaken by the Eurofighter Typhoon Force, which made the RAF’s previous most recent deployment to Iceland in 2019. During that deployment 180 practice intercepts were flown as well as 59 training sorties.
Like the Baltic states, Iceland does not have an air force capable of flying air defence missions. The NATO air policing mission in Iceland is locally designated as the NATO Airborne Surveillance and Interception Capabilities to meet Iceland’s Peacetime Preparedness Needs or ASIC IPPN. It dates back to 2007, following the end of what had been a permanent US Air Force fighter presence. Since then, various NATO air forces have taken it in turn to deploy fighter units to the joint civilian-military airfield at Keflavik, around 30 miles from the capital city of Reykjavik. The air policing deployment will share Keflavik’s ‘security zone’ with deployed NATO ASW and MPA aircraft that monitor submarine traffic in the North Atlantic. Weather permitting, approach exercises to the alternate airports of Akureyri and Egilsstaðir are planned for the period from 5-16 August.
The implementation of the project will be managed by the Defense Division of the Icelandic Coast Guard on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in close co-operation with Isavia, Iceland’s national airport and air navigation service provider.
Operational command and control will be exercised via the NATO Control and Reporting Centre in Keflavík and the NATO Combined Air Operations Centre in Uedem, Germany.
Luke Pollard, Minister for the Armed Forces, said that: “The UK is unshakeable in its commitment to NATO. With threats increasing and growing Russian aggression, it is vital that we stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies. This latest air policing mission in Iceland displays the UK’s ability to operate and deter our adversaries across the alliance’s airspace.
Following a successful mission in Romania, where six Typhoon fighter jets and over two hundred personnel were stationed at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, defending NATO’s eastern border, the RAF will now move to Iceland. This time, four cutting edge F-35B jets from 617 squadron will be patrolling Icelandic airspace, having travelled from RAF Marham.”
The RAF’s F-35B Lightnings are held at high readiness to deploy in support of UK and NATO operations Worldwide – from both land bases and the Royal Navy’s two aircraft carriers. The F-35 is equipped with advanced sensors, mission systems and low observable stealth technology, which together ensure that it cannot easily be detected, providing a significant tactical advantage in many operational scenarios. There seems to be an ongoing effort to try to demonstrate the aircraft’s usefulness and capabilities, with some pushing for further F-35 procurement instead of the more advanced sixth generation GCAP.
