Defence Minister Angel Tilvar, accompanied by Chief of Defence (CoD) Daniel Petrescu and Chief of the Air Force Staff Viorel Pana on Thursday visited the Carpathian Vipers detachment deployed by the Romanian Air Force to the Siauliai Base in Lithuania.
"The exercises and training you have participated in are valuable experiences in the career plan of each of you, but they also addto the interoperability of the Romanian Air Force. You will return home stronger, better prepared and much more motivated to continue to evolve in your impressive careers," the Defence Ministry (MApN) quotes Tilvar as saying in a press release.
Tilvar, who attended the NATO Summit in Vilnius, congratulated the Romanian Air Force troops on the professional manner in which they carried out their missions, including those of ensuring the security of the airspace during the most important meeting of NATO this year.
CoD Petrescu said that taking up the responsibilities of securing the allied airspace in the Baltic region, as part of the Enhanced Air Policing mission under NATO command, strengthens Romania's role as a reliable ally and a pillar of stability on the eastern flank.
"Through the real missions during the four months of deployment, through your excellent performances in the exercises and training performed together with the most advanced NATO military aviation, you once again proved the interoperability of the Romanian Air Force with similar structures in NATO and you have reconfirmed the value and professionalism of Romanian military aviators," Petrescu said.
The Carpathian Vipers detachment, composed of four F-16 multirole fighter aircraft and 100 troops, is deployed until the end of July to the Siauliai Air Base.
The Romanian detachment serves with the Enhanced Air Policing mission under NATO command, together with the Portuguese Air Force, as part of the 62nd rotation of the mission to defend the integrity of the airspace of the Baltic countries.
A first real interception mission occurred in the first week after taking over the responsibilities from the French partners. To date, F-16 aircraft have been alerted by the NATO Air Operations Center in Uedem, Germany, more than 20 times, resulting in approximately 50 aircraft sorties.
The Romanian Air Force is at its second deployment in Lithuania, after the first air policing mission between August and October 2007 with a detachment of 67 troops and four MiG-21 LanceR aircraft from the 71st General Emanoil Ionescu Air Base. AGERPRES
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