Norway sends F-35s to Iceland for NATO Air Policing

Credit: Courtesy | Date Taken: 03/05/2020
Norway has sent four F-35 Lighting II fighters to police Iceland’s airspace, marking the first deployment abroad for the Royal Norwegian Air Force’s most advanced fighter. NATO’s Air Policing mission in Iceland, formally called Airborne Surveillance and Interception Capabilities to meet Iceland’s Peacetime Preparedness Needs, is responsible for monitoring the airspace in and around Iceland while ensuring that all air traffic is identified. Because Iceland has no military, Allies provide this service on a rotating basis. Footage includes shots of F-35s taxiing, taking off and landing; shots inside Control and Reporting Centre Keflavík; and drone footage of the Icelandic coast. Includes interviews in English and Norwegian with Royal Norwegian Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Ståle Nymoen, detachment commander, and Icelandic Coast Guard Lieutenant Guomundur Hallgrimsson. 1. (00:00) VARIOUS SHOTS – F-35 LIGHTNING II FIGHTERS EXITING SHELTERS AND TAXIING FOR TAKEOFF 2. (00:44) VARIOUS SHOTS – F-35 FIGHTERS TAXIING TO RUNWAY 3. (00:55) VARIOUS SHOTS – F-35 FIGHTERS TAKING OFF 4. (01:02) VARIOUS SHOTS – F-35 FIGHTERS LANDING 5. (01:32) GIMBAL SHOT – ICELANDIC COAST GUARD OFFICERS MONITORING SCREENS 6. (01:38) GIMBAL SHOT – NORWEGIAN CONTROLLER MONITORING SCREENS 7. (01:45) GIMBAL SHOTS – F-35 IN SHELTER 8. (02:06) DRONE SHOTS – ICELANDIC COUNTRYSIDE AND COAST 9. (02:29) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) LIEUTENANT COLONEL STÅLE NYMOEN, DETACHMENT COMMANDER, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “The reason why we do air policing in Iceland is because we, as an Alliance, need to make sure that the skies are safe. And Iceland does not have its own air force, so Norway has been involved in this since about 2008, and historically as well, we have ties with Iceland that are important, so for Norway it is important to be at Iceland with fighters, and to make sure that the skies around and above Iceland are safe on behalf of NATO.” 10. (02:57) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) LIEUTENANT COLONEL STÅLE NYMOEN, DETACHMENT COMMANDER, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “This deployment is unique because this is the first time Norway deploys out-of-country with F-35s. And the way we have chosen to do it is actually to deploy with the kit we need to support a full squadron, even though we’re only here with four jets, of which two are on alert.” 11. (03:13) SOUNDBITE (NORWEGIAN) LIEUTENANT COLONEL STÅLE NYMOEN, DETACHMENT COMMANDER, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “We’re here in Keflavík, we’re here with four F-35s and two are on alert for NATO. The reason for that is we want to be loyal Allies for NATO. Iceland doesn’t have its own Air Force. We have now chosen the F-35 to cover Iceland’s Air Policing.” 12. (03:34) SOUNDBITE (NORWEGIAN) LIEUTENANT COLONEL STÅLE NYMOEN, DETACHMENT COMMANDER, ROYAL NORWEGIAN AIR FORCE “This is the first time we’ve deployed the F-35 outside of Norway. We have chosen to deploy all of our kit needed to support a whole squadron, even though we only have four aircraft. We do this because we will learn a lot from this experience, and we can use that on our next deployment.” 13. (03:55) SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) LIEUTENANT GUOMUNDUR HALLGRIMSSON, ICELANDIC COAST GUARD “So here in Iceland, we don’t have our own military, but the closest thing we have is the Icelandic Coast Guard. And we are running and maintaining four remote radar and radio sites in Iceland, one on each corner of the island. Here in Control and Reporting Centre Keflavík, we have all the systems needed, all the air defence systems and the NATO information systems that we maintain here. The air defence system processes all the radar data, and our Icelandic Coast Guard surveillance operators, they identify all aircraft that fly into the area. We are then well-connected to NATO and we have communication channels with NATO, so all traffic that comes here that we need to report, we report to NATO, and then NATO takes appropriate action.”