Allied training flights in Estonian airspace to continue

Minister of Defence Jüri Luik (Pro Patria) decided on Friday to restore access to training areas in Estonian airspace for allied training flights starting 27 August, the Ministry of Defence announced in a press release.
"In order to ensure Estonia's security, full scale NATO air policing missions must be carried out in our airspace, including various air policing related combat training exercises," Luik was quoted in the press release.
According to the Minister, the training flights are an essential contributing factor to the readiness of allied units stationed here to secure the Estonian airspace.
Luik pointed out that the investigation of an incident on 7 August, in which a Spanish Eurofighter jet accidentally fired an air-to-air missile over Tartu County, is still ongoing.
"It is not possible to comment on it further at this time," Luik said, adding that there is no reason to believe that it had anything to do with airspace regulations. "Also, there was no threat to civil aviation at any time during the accident," he said.
Meanwhile Spanish authorities have opened their own investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding the accidental firing of a missile, and air safety specialists of the Estonian Air Force's headquarters are investigating the incident on behalf of the Estonian Defence Forces (EDF) as well.
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Editor: Dario Cavegn