British and German fighter jets intercepted a Russian jet while flying near Estonian airspace on Friday, Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) said in a statement. CNN.

It was the second such raid this week as NATO conducts joint air surveillance operations in the region.

Two Typhoons intercepted “a Tu-134 aircraft with the NATO codename Crusty, which was escorted by two Su-27 flanking fighters and an AN-12 (Cub) military transport aircraft,” the RAF said.

Such an intercept is not unusual for NATO aircraft, but the joint air patrol mission is a first for the two NATO allies, the statement said.

The Royal Air Force described the operation as reassurance that the UK, Germany and other NATO countries “stand by their Estonian ally at this time of stress”.

“We quickly identified the Russian aircraft and then tracked it as it flew close to NATO airspace,” said Richard Leask, commander of the US Air Force.

Air surveillance missions help NATO identify any aircraft approaching the airspace, “make sure we know who they are” and keep everyone safe in the airspace, Leask continued.

The Royal Air Force is deployed to Estonia as part of Operation Azot, which is tasked with protecting against any aircraft causing concern in Baltic airspace, the military said in a statement. Britain will take over from the German detachment in April, and joint missions between the allies will continue until the end of this month.

Two intercepts involving NATO aircraft this week came after a Russian jet shot down a US drone over the Black Sea. The downing of the drone highlighted the risk of direct confrontation between Russia and NATO during Moscow’s war in Ukraine.