According to the Lithuanian Armed Forces, the deployment of the air defence system Patriot is a first step towards the implementation of rotational air defence model, which is aimed at boosting NATO’s integrated air and anti-missile defence, and was agreed on at the NATO summit in Vilnius last year.
The exercise will train capability redeployment and integration, unified control and command, and implementation of air defence operations. Aircraft, helicopter, fighter jet and drone activities will be imitated, to which exercise participants will react.
During the exercise, smoke or explosive charges will not be used. More active movement of military transport and various types of aircraft at night and day is foreseen.
Air Defence Battalion of the Lithuanian Air Force will take part in the exercise with the medium range air defence systems NASAMS. Aircraft of the Lithuanian Air Force, as well as Spanish and Portuguese fighter aircraft conducting the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission will participate in the exercise, too.