Two British aircraft carried out a 12-hour mission along the borders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
In a rare mission, the Royal Air Force (RAF) RC-135W rivet joint On October 9, 2025, the electronic reconnaissance aircraft carried out a 12-hour mission, patrolling along the entire border of NATO's eastern flank and the Black Sea. Royal Air Force P-8A Poseidon (British designated Poseidon MRA1) also flew a journey along the Russian and Belarusian border before patrolling the Baltic Sea.
Royal Air Force statement It is said that the P-8A flies a “concentrated route” around the Baltic Sea, while the RC-13W flies south along the borders of Finland, the Baltic countries and Russia, bypasses the borders of Belarus and Ukraine, and finally enters the Black Sea and returns to the UK.
The two aircraft were supported by a U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker assigned to the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall. The RC-135W and P-8A took off from RAF Waddington and RAF Lossiemouth respectively. RAF Waddington is home to 51 Squadron, and RAF Lossiemouth is home to 120 Squadron, 201 Squadron and 42 (Torpedo Bomber) Squadron.
Been watching.
✈️ RAF Rivet and Poseidon, supported by US Air Force KC-135s, patrol the eastern flank of NATO.
This mission demonstrates NATO's unity and readiness to defend its airspace in response to Russia's illegal intrusion. 💪#wearenato #alwaysready #strongertogether pic.twitter.com/lxQnjfaCtm
— Royal Air Force (@RoyalAirForce) October 10, 2025
Flight observers tracked the RC-135W and KC-135 tankers late on the morning of October 9, taking off from RAF Waddington and RAF Mildenhall, respectively, with call signs ASCOT7209 and LAGER51 respectively.
The RAF said the mission was in response to repeated incursions by Russian drones and aircraft into the airspace of NATO countries including Poland, Estonia and Romania last month. It said the support of the US KC-135 Stratotanker demonstrated “transatlantic solidarity among NATO allies”.
interestingly, October 11, 2024An RAF RC-135W Rivet Joint became the first Allied aircraft to complete a full transit along NATO's eastern border from the southernmost tip of Greece to the northernmost tip of Finland.
#RAF Royal Air Force
Boeing RC-135W rivet joint 1x#43C38C ZZ663 – ASCOT7209
The RAF RJ aircraft which took off from Waddington early this morning observed the Russian border from the top of Finland all the way to Romania and has now flown over the Black Sea.
This is the first RAF RJ… https://t.co/6eAaNJ1b9J pic.twitter.com/4hQj3Wkk8Q
— Armchair Adml 🇬🇧 (@ArmchairAdml) October 9, 2025
mission
flight repertoire show The RC-135W (using call sign “RRR7209”) and the KC-135 briefly flew over the North Sea, where the former was to conduct aerial refueling. The two aircraft's paths began to intersect in the northern Black Sea and aligned completely off the west coast of Norway where refueling was possible.
The KC-135 broke off off northwest Norway and turned back south, and the RC-135W continued forward, turning west to track the Russian border over Finland.
The RAF expects the total distance of the mission to be 10,000 miles from the High North and says the refueling of the KC-135 “extends the operational range of both RAF aircraft”. This means that the P-8A may be fueled for the first time in a combat scenario after the test in late September.
RAF RC-135W rivet joint #RRR7209 Today, Poseidon MRA1 is operational throughout NATO’s eastern border. pic.twitter.com/0gGuDgiGFV
— Olli Suorsa (@OlliSuorsa) October 9, 2025
In fact, RAF P-8As recently tested aerial refueling from a USAF KC-135 for the first time on September 17 as part of Exercise Cobra Warrior. This is to compensate for a lack of capability caused by a lack of boom-equipped tankers in the RAF inventory.
At the time, the U.S. Air Force called it a “simulated aerial refueling exercise,” while an RAF press release said two flights were conducted. This means that the first flight may have simply simulated refueling, while the second flight may have had the actual connection and fuel transfer taking place.
As previously reported, the Voyager KC2 and KC3 (the RAF designation for the Airbus A330 MRTT) are equipped with hose and drogue refueling systems and can only be used with RAF Typhoon and F-35Bsalthough they cannot refuel RC-135W and P-8As, E-7A wedge tail Or the C-17 Globemaster III, whose socket is only boom-compatible.
About the latest mission, about the flight path observation of the Royal Air Force P-8A The image does not show it flying over the Baltic Sea, but largely mirrors the RC-135W's route before heading west over Polish airspace toward Germany. The plane then flew over the water on its way back, approaching the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea coast.
this RC-135WAfter takeoff, it headed north along the Norwegian coast into the North Sea, entered Finnish airspace, turned south, briefly flew over the Baltic Sea, over Estonia and Latvia, and bypassed the Russian border. It then continued south over Lithuania and Poland, close to the borders of Belarus and Ukraine, and over Slovakia before finally turning east over eastern Romania and into the Black Sea.
The RC-135 flew a small circular route off the central Black Sea before turning back into Romania. It then flew over Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Germany and the Netherlands before returning to the UK.
October 9, 2025#RAF Waddington ==> #Finland – Russian border #RRR7209 #43C38C RAF RC-135W rivet joint
come on #RAF Mildenhall #Norway ocean#NoCALLSIGN #AE062B U.S. Air Force KC-135R Stratotanker pic.twitter.com/vZbhgco8Vc
— Heo Tae Jin (@AIYeyENGDdJkjTr) October 9, 2025
“Collective determination and coordination to defend NATO”
The RAF said the RC-135s and P-8s “flew a total of nearly 10,000 miles from the High North along the Russian border, through Belarus and Ukraine.” The service later added that the mission could demonstrate its “NATO operational readiness and collective resolve.”
It then describes the two aircraft as “designed to gather intelligence using a range of methods to increase operational awareness and provide valuable data for analysis.”
“The RC-135 Rivet Joint is a key intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platform designed to listen for a variety of different signals across the electromagnetic spectrum, enabling it to eavesdrop on military communications,” the RAF said. “The P-8A Poseidon is specialized in anti-submarine warfare and can carry torpedoes and anti-ship missiles, flying primarily around the Baltic Sea.”
The two aircraft “coordinate closely with NATO allies across Europe” to provide “comprehensive situational awareness, monitor activities on the alliance's eastern flank and deter any potential threats to the airspace.”
October 10, 2025#RAF Waddington #NATO– Russian border #black ocean#RRR7209 #43C38C RAF RC-135W rivet joint pic.twitter.com/c7KXlb6CmP
— Heo Tae Jin (@AIYeyENGDdJkjTr) October 9, 2025
The statement added: “This joint mission highlights NATO's commitment to collective defense and its ability to operate unitedly against emerging threats. By combining advanced surveillance and maritime patrol capabilities with air-to-air refueling support, the RAF and its NATO allies will continue to defend Alliance airspace and uphold international law.”
In early September, drones from Russia violated Polish airspace prompts NATO launch Operation Eastern Sentinel In Poland, RAF Coningsby's Typhoons were also deployed on the eastern flank of the alliance.
