Finland to join Iceland’s Air Policing Mission for first time as NATO Member

Finland will mark an important moment later this month with its first-ever participation in the Air Policing Mission in Iceland as a NATO member.
One fighter detachment, made up of four Finnish F/A-18 Hornet fighter jets and up to 50 personnel, will arrive in Iceland at the end of January.
“The participation of Finland in the Icelandic Air Policing Mission is a significant milestone which demonstrates how Finland and Sweden’s entry into NATO strengthens and deepens our defence cooperation and contributes to our security,” Iceland’s Foreign Minister, Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, said in a statement.
NATO’s ongoing role in protecting Icelandic airspace
This mission is part of NATO’s regular air policing activities in the country.
Iceland has no standing armed forces and relies on NATO allies to conduct Iceland Air Policing missions three times a year on a rotational basis.

This mission involves monitoring air traffic and airspace, identifying and documenting unknown aircraft, and escorting them out of Icelandic airspace and, if necessary, beyond NATO airspace, if needed.
“The deployment will be a concrete example of Nordic cooperation and the Finnish Air Force’s capability to carry out missions throughout NATO territory,” Major General Timo Herranen, the Commander of the Finnish Air Force, said in a statement on the air force’s website.
“It is in line with Finland’s objectives that NATO has recognized the strategic importance of the High North,” Herranen said.
The Finnish detachment in Iceland will work with NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre in Uedem, Germany, and personnel stationed at Keflavik Air Base in Iceland.
Third NATO deployment for Finland
Finland, along with Sweden, announced their intention to apply for NATO membership in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Finland officially became a NATO member on April 4, 2023.
The mission in Iceland will be the third NATO deployment for Finland since it became a member of the alliance.
It previously deployed to the NATO Summit in Lithuania in 2023 and in NATO’s Air Policing and Air Shielding missions in Romania for two months in 2024.
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