In November 2021, the Greek Air Force assumed responsibility for safeguarding North Macedonia’s airspace under the NATO Air Policing mission umbrella. North Macedonia is NATO’s newest member, having joined on 27 March 2020.
Air Policing is a peacetime activity that secures the airspace over and near NATO Allies 24/7, 365 days a year by ensuring safe and predictable behaviour.
When civilian or military air traffic behave unsafely – for example, by failing to respond to air traffic controllers – NATO Allies can scramble jets to investigate and verify the traffic. Some Allies lack supersonic jets capable of preforming interceptions, so others step up to cover their skies, either on a permanent or rotational basis.
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