A Russian Mi-8 military helicopter briefly entered Polish airspace from the Kaliningrad region on Wednesday, prompting Poland to scramble fighter aircraft and place ground forces on standby, according to the Polish military.
The incident occurred north of the Polish town of Braniewo at around 11:08 local time, according to Poland’s Operational Command.
42 seconds inside Polish airspace
The Russian helicopter remained inside Polish airspace for 42 seconds and reached a maximum depth of around 300 metres, the Polish military said.
The flight was monitored by Polish military radar systems. Fighter aircraft were scrambled while ground-based forces and assets remained on standby.
Poland says air defences were being tested
Poland’s Operational Command said the nature of the incident indicated that Russia was “once again testing” the readiness of Polish air defences.
The command said Polish air-defence systems maintain continuous surveillance of the country’s airspace and remain ready to respond.
The incident comes amid heightened concern in Poland over Russian military activity near NATO’s eastern flank, including previous airspace-related incidents involving Russian aircraft. Earlier this week, Poland also conducted preventive military aviation operations in response to Russian attacks on Ukraine.
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