On August 24, NATO fighters were scrambled to identify two Su-24 attack aircraft. The planes were flying with their radar transponders turned off, without flight plans, and were not maintaining radio communication with the Regional Air Traffic Control Center (RATCC). On the same day, the air police intercepted two more Su-24M attack aircraft. They were also flying with their transponders turned off, without flight plans, and did not communicate with the RATCC. NATO fighters in the Baltic States are based at airfields in Lithuania and Estonia. Russian Air Force planes typically conduct flights to the Kaliningrad region, which is surrounded by NATO countries on land from all sides.
