WHEN brave Nato pilots intercepted daring Russian fighter jets threatening to spark World War III by breaching Estonian airspace, the last thing they expected to see was a friendly wave.
The two Italian F-35s took part in a nailbiting 12-minute stand-off pursuing Vladimir Putin’s nuclear-capable MiG-31 fighter jets – in the Russian tyrant’s latest attempt to put Nato to the test.
AFPThe three MiG-31s were seen circling over Vaindloo Island[/caption]
GettyItalian F-35s scrambled to meet Russian jets over Estonian airspace[/caption]
APThe move comes as Putin continues to test Nato with airspace breaches[/caption]
The chilling ordeal unfolded when three Russian warplanes entered Estonia’s airspace on September 19 before circling over Vaindloo Island.
The unprecedented manoeuvre prompted Nato‘s most advanced fighter jets, dubbed “Ghost 1” and “Ghost 2”, to immediately set off from Amari airbase, about 50km from the capital Tallinn.
The three MiG-31s had their transponders turned off – and were therefore not in radio contact with the Nato pilots.
Beginning their routine aerial interception procedure, the Italians cautiously rocked their wings from side to side.
In response, the Russians mirrored the manoeuvre – before one of them unexpectedly raised their hand and gave a taunting wave.
The two Italians then proceeded to trail Putin’s planes all the way to the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, further southwest of Estonia.
MiG-31s are capable of carrying terrifying Kinzhal hypersonic missiles which can be fitted with nuclear warheads.
Luckily, neither side engaged in armed conflict – with the two Italian pilots working calmly to carry out the tense operation.
Lieutenant Colonel Gaetano Farina, the commander of the Italian air task force at Amari air base said: “We are really proud of how we react every time.”
But the brazen airspace incursion has added to mounting fears that Russian despot Putin is trying to trigger full-scale war with the defence alliance.
Nato oversees the airspace over the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Lt Col Farina’s men have scrambled seven times since the Italian rotation started last month.
But every encounter had taken place over international waters – until Putin’s limit-testing move last Friday.
Donald Trump responded to the reckless violation and said the incursion could cause “big trouble”.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsakhna said that Putin’s forces have already violated his country’s airspace four times this year.
He said: “But today’s incursion, involving three fighter aircraft entering our airspace, is unprecedentedly brazen.
“Russia’s increasingly extensive testing of boundaries and growing aggressiveness must be met with a swift increase in political and economic pressure.”
GettyThe Russian MiG-31 can carry nuclear warheads[/caption]
It comes after Trump said Ukraine could win back all of its land at the United Nations
A NATO spokesperson said Russia had “violated Estonian airspace” and the alliance “responded immediately and intercepted the Russian aircraft”.
They added: “This is yet another example of reckless Russian behaviour and NATO’s ability to respond.”
EU foreign policy boss Kaja Kallas said this violation of Estonian airspace was an “extremely dangerous provocation”.
She noted that this was the third violation of EU airspace “in days”.
The latest escalation came after a fortnight of daring manoeuvres from an increasingly emboldened Putin.
Donald Trump at the United Nations
DONALD Trump announced in his keynote speech at the UN General Assembly that Ukraine could win back “every inch” of its territory with Russia.
In a major pivot from his previous stance on the three-and-a-half-year conflict, Trump also dismissed Russia’s military strength and mocked its inability to beat Ukraine in just a few days.
Posting on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump said Ukraine “may be able to take back their country in its original form and, who knows, maybe even go further than that”.
Trump’s Vlad-bashing follows months of growing frustration at Putin’s refusal to end the offensive in Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov hit back at Trump’s insults, particularly those levelled at the Russian economy.
“The phrase ‘paper tiger’ was used in relation to our economy,” he said.
“Russia is more associated with a bear. And paper bears don’t exist.
“Russia is a real bear.”
Peskov did, however, admit that the Russian economy had faced “tensions”.
Two weeks ago, Polish authorities said they detected 19 violations of their airspace.
It prompted a dramatic million-dollar response as fighter jets were scrambled and Patriot air defence systems placed on alert.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the incident brought Poland closer to military conflict “than at any time since the Second World War”.
Up to four drones were shot down with the help of Nato allies.
It marked the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 that Nato has directly engaged with Vlad’s forces.
And it was followed by a Russian drone overflying Romania for 50 minutes on Saturday.
Airports in Oslo, Norway and Copenhagen, Denmark, have also had to close due to mystery drone incursions.
It also comes after Donald Trump suddenly backed Ukraine and insisted they could win back all of their occupied land.
In Trump’s speech at the United Nations on Tuesday, he insulted Putin’s nation, calling it a “paper tiger” with a failing economy.
X/@MSchieller69609Drones flew over Danish airspace on Monday[/caption]