NATO is shifting from air policing to a new ‘360-degree’ defense as drone and missile threats grow, official says

NATO is pursuing a new approach to its air defense operations across Europe, shifting focus away from traditional air policing missions and toward a 360-degree strategy, an alliance official said.

The transition to a more comprehensive approach comes amid a rise in Russian drone incursions into NATO airspace this year. Allied militaries have repeatedly scrambled fighter jets to track and sometimes shoot them down.

A NATO official told Business Insider that NATO's integrated air and missile defense strategy is changing from a framework focused on air policing to a "multi-layered, 360-degree approach" designed to address a range of threats.

The air policing missions involve keeping NATO fighter jets and crews at a high state of readiness so they can launch within minutes to protect allied airspace against potentially hostile crewed aircraft and drones.

The revised air defense framework is intended to protect NATO from "threats across all domains," including crewed aircraft, drones, and cruise and ballistic missiles, the official said this week. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive strategic developments.

The new framework goes beyond scrambling fighter jets, missions that are more formally known as Quick Reaction Alert; it incorporates "assets and capabilities available across all operational domains," they said.

The revised framework includes QRA fighter jets, surface-based air defense systems, counter-drone equipment such as mobile firing teams and helicopters, and next-generation sensors that individual allies are contributing for placement under NATO command.

NATO established its air policing operations in the 1960s during the Cold War. In the decades since, these missions have expanded across Europe, including around the strategic Baltic region.

The transition to a new air defense approach began roughly a year ago after nearly two dozen Russian drones crossed into Polish airspace, marking the largest spillover from the war in Ukraine into NATO.

Add BI in Google so our reporting is easier to find when you’re searching for what matters.

The alliance quickly launched its "Eastern Sentry" operation and surged air defense assets — including fighter jets, warships, and counter-drone systems — to allies along the shared borders with Russia and Belarus.

Eastern Sentry, which was designed to deter against future airspace violations, "laid the foundation" for the new air defense framework, the NATO official said, adding that allies "are now implementing the required capabilities to support this updated approach."