Canada will send four CF-188 Hornet fighter aircraft to Romania in early September, as part of a Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) air task force to augment NATO and Romanian aircraft patrolling the country’s airspace, reports Skiesmag.com.

Moreover, the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) will send around 135 military personnel to the Romanian seaside city of Constanta, for a four-month mission between September and December.

The mission is part of Operation Reassurance, Canada’s contribution to NATO assurance and deterrence measures.

Most of the RCAF members deployed to Romania will mainly come from 409 Tactical Fighter Squadron at 4 Wing Cold Lake, Alberta, supported by 2 Air Expeditionary Wing in Bagotville, Quebec, and 17 Wing Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The RCAF first deployed an air task force to Romania in April 2014 as part of NATO’s response to the Russian annexation of Crimea and military activity along the border of eastern Ukraine. The mission began as bilateral air-to-air training for the Hornet aircrews and Romania’s MiG21 Lancers, focused on air defense, air superiority and tactical support, but it grew into joint bilateral air-to-ground training.

Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Rcaf-arc.forces.gc.ca)