Spanish Air Contingent to Protect Romania’s Skies

The Spanish Tactical Aviation Detachment (DAT) Paznic will be deployed to Romania as part of NATO’s enhanced Air Policing mission eAP-72.

According to Spain’s Ministry of Defense, the contingent will consist of around 200 Air and Space Force personnel and will operate in Romania for four months, helping protect NATO airspace on the Alliance’s eastern flank.

The core of the detachment’s air fleet will consist of seven F-18M aircraft from the 12th Squadron, which will perform missions throughout the entire deployment period.

In addition, during the first two months of the mission, the contingent will be reinforced with an A400M aircraft from the 31st Squadron. Later, during the final phase of the operation, three NH-90 helicopters from the 48th Aviation Squadron will join the deployment to conduct counter-drone (C-UAS) missions.

The mission will operate from Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base (MK AB), a key NATO facility in Romania that supports Alliance operations and presence in the Black Sea region. From this base, the Spanish contingent will work closely with Romanian authorities, NATO command structures, and other allied forces deployed in the area.

The detachment includes command staff, operational support personnel, pilots and aircrews, aircraft maintenance teams, logistics specialists, force protection units, communications and IT personnel, medical staff, legal advisers, administrative personnel, security teams, and other support elements.

“Spain is joining this mission to strengthen the Alliance’s position as a committed, reliable, and capable ally. We understand that collective defense is not an abstract principle, but a daily responsibility that requires presence, readiness, and credibility,” said Lieutenant Colonel Alberto Borja Calvo López, the contingent commander.

Outside the air base, three intercept controllers and one Link 16 operator will carry out their deployment mission from the Balotești Air Control and Reporting Center in Bucharest, integrating the detachment into NATO’s air command and control architecture.

The deployment of the Spanish contingent to Romania may be linked to the increasing number of violations of Romanian airspace by Russian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which led the country to declare a Russian diplomat persona non grata.