Overview
- The Swedish Armed Forces scrambled two pairs of JAS 39 Gripen fighters to intercept a Russian Su‑24 and a Su‑34 in separate southern and northern/eastern Baltic incidents that occurred on Friday, June 13, 2026.
- Swedish officials reported that neither aircraft entered Swedish airspace and that allied fighters, including Danish jets in the southern incident, were also scrambled to help identify and track the flights.
- Vice Admiral Ewa Skoog Haslum described the behavior as serious and recurring, and the Swedish military said it has strengthened its presence and raised combat readiness in response to the increased threat to allied airspace.
- An analyst noted imagery suggesting the Su‑24 was a Su‑24MR reconnaissance variant, which points to possible Russian intelligence collection rather than a routine transit.
- The intercepts come after a sustained rise in Russian flights near the Baltic since 2022 and follow Sweden’s NATO accession in March 2024, which has integrated Swedish Gripens into allied Baltic air policing and changed how Stockholm responds to such incidents.