The German Air Force dispatched two Eurofighter jets to monitor a Russian IL-20M reconnaissance aircraft that entered neutral airspace over the Baltic Sea on September 21, 2025. After visually identifying the aircraft, the German Air Force transferred the escort responsibility to Swedish NATO allies and returned to Rostock-Laage. Cold War era spy aircraftThe Russian aircraft was flying without providing a flight path or radio contact that could signal its presence, according to officials from the Swedish and German air forces. The Ilyushin Il-20M, known as ‘Coot-A’ by NATO, is a Soviet-made electronic intelligence (ELINT) and reconnaissance aircraft, created during the Cold War and currently used by the Russian Aerospace Forces. On September 19, 2025, three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets unlawfully entered Estonia’s airspace over the Gulf of Finland.