Searching for…?

Interesting movements east of Malta this early afternoon. An Italian Air Force ATR P-72A (reg. MM62281) and a USN Boeing P-8A, both departing from Sigonella, spent a long time orbiting the area east of Malta.

While the deployment of the Italian P-72, which arrived first, might have suggested a mission somehow related to immigration, the arrival of the American P-8A pointed to something else.

We do not know the exact location of the Russian naval flotilla that left Tartus last week, but based on reasonable calculations, it could indeed be in the area.

It is worth noting that the last time we saw Italian and US aircraft operating together was when they were monitoring the Russian spy ship Yantar.

Both assets then continued their respective missions—the P-72 heading to the Sicily Channel and the P-8 to the eastern Mediterranean.