British mission over the Black Sea

A new surveillance mission by the RAF is currently underway (15:00 CET) over the Black Sea.

A Boeing RC-135W (reg. ZZ665), departed from RAF Mildenhall, is currently flying southwest of Crimea in an eastward direction.

The aircraft is accompanied by two Eurofighter Typhoon FGR.4 jets (reg. ZK327, ZK323) launched from the Cypriot base of RAF Akrotiri.

Escorting such flights has become routine after the serious incident involving a British Rivet Joint aircraft in September 2022, where a Russian fighter mistakenly launched a missile at the British aircraft, as Moscow claims.

The entire mission is supported by an Airbus KC.2 tanker (reg. ZZ334), also launched from RAF Akrotiri, which is orbiting over eastern Romania.

It’s worth noting that a USN Boeing P-8A is also conducting a SIGINT mission, orbiting over the Danube Delta.