As Iceland does not maintain an air force, the country was left without means to patrol its airspace when the
United States Air Force (USAF) ceased deploying fighter units to Keflavik Air Base in September 2006, and the U.S.
Iceland Defense Force was withdrawn. Following the American withdrawal
Russian Air Force 37th Air Army aircraft entered Icelandic airspace on several occasions. Prime Minister
Geir Haarde requested that Iceland's NATO allies assume responsibility for protecting Iceland's airspace during the
Riga Summit in November 2006. The
North Atlantic Council agreed to this request at its July 2007 meeting. In March 2008, Prime Minister Haarde denied that the air policing operation was targeting Russian aircraft, and stated that "It is going to be a general patrolling exercise. We consider Russia to be our friends, by the way." In contrast with the
Baltic Air Policing mission, which involves the continuous presence of fighter aircraft from NATO countries at
Šiauliai International Airport in Lithuania and
Ämari Air Base in Estonia, the Icelandic government requested that NATO not maintain a permanent force at Keflavik. Since 2014 the aircraft deployed to Iceland have been placed on
Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) status and flown armed patrols. While these tasks were not previously undertaken, it was decided to commence them in response to the deterioration in relations between Russia and NATO countries following the
annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and the
war in Donbas. In March 2022 it was reported that the Icelandic government was considering whether a continuous air policing presence was required due to the increased threat resulting from the
Russian invasion of Ukraine. Formal discussions of the matter had not yet taken place. In February 2026 NATO initiated the
Arctic Sentry initiative to strengthen its activities in the Arctic and high north regions. The Icelandic Air Policing mission is a major element of Arctic Sentry. ==Deployments==