What’s happening in the Ionian Sea?

An unusual situation is unfolding in the Ionian Sea, southeast of the Peloponnese. Overnight, at least two USNavy Boeing P-8A aircraft took off from NAS Sigonella and alternated their operations from late yesterday evening until the early hours of this morning (around 04:00 CET) in an area just outside Greek territorial waters southwest of the Peloponnese.

The flight pattern is unusual but not unprecedented. It closely resembles one observed off the coast of Rome in early December.

What can we hypothesize? In December, similar missions were recorded across the Tyrrhenian Sea, likely due to the presence of a Russian spy ship. Currently, there are two Russian spy ships in the Mediterranean: the Yantar, which departed Alexandria, Egypt, on January 3, and the Kildin, which left Tartus on December 17.

It’s plausible that one of these vessels is navigating the area and is being monitored by NATO assets (the Greek air base in Kalamata is not far away). We’ll see if similar missions are recorded in adjacent areas in the coming days.