"Dutch military photos showed an F-35 stealth fighter sporting a fresh drone-shaped kill mark after the advanced jet was used to shoot down Russian drones that violated alliance airspace. The images from the Netherlands' defense ministry show the marking on the fuselage, just below the cockpit. The marking, not displayed on other F-35 fighter jets, distinctly resembles the triangular Delta-wing one-way attack drones Russia uses."
"The Dutch Ministry of Defense told Business Insider that the marking was added "after taking out multiple drones in Polish Airspace in September." It said the marking was only added to one F-35 that took out multiple drones, but it said that it was not disclosing anything about the number of kills. Markings are added to jets to indicate victories. The tradition started in World War I with the emergence of military aviation and still continues today."
A Dutch F-35 received a drone-shaped kill marking after the jet shot down Russian drones that violated Polish airspace. Photographs from the Netherlands' defense ministry show the marking on the fuselage below the cockpit, and the marking resembles the triangular Delta-wing one-way attack drones used by Russia. The Dutch Ministry of Defense said the marking was added after taking out multiple drones in Polish airspace in September and was applied only to the one F-35 involved; the number of kills was not disclosed. The use of high-value fighters against cheap drones raises cost-curve concerns and increases demand for low-cost defenses. NATO jets have been scrambled repeatedly since Russia's 2022 invasion, and this incident marked the first time NATO aircraft destroyed Russian aircraft within alliance airspace.
Read at Business Insider
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