According to Latvia’s Military, U.S. Air Force F-15Cs, deployed to Šiauliai, Lithuania for air policing in the Baltics, intercepted an Il-20 spy plane.
Russian Air Force missions in the area often require NATO jet fighters to intercept Il-20 spy planes, Tu-22M Backfire bombers, and Su-27 fighter jets. Such close encounters have become a bit more frequent since Russian invasion of Crimea and subsequent international crisis over Ukraine.
On February 24, two F-15Cs taking part to a flyby in Estonia were diverted to intercept a Russian plane before flying over the city of Pärnu.
On April 25, two Tu-95H bombers were intercepted by RAF Typhoons and by Dutch and Danish F-16s during a long range patrol around UK.