Aerial pictures of the leaks were taken by one of the pilots onboard an F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jet operated by the Royal Danish Air Force’s interceptor response unit
Taken by Royal Danish Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets, the photos in this post feature the three gas leaks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea.
Aerial pictures of the leaks were taken by one of the pilots onboard an F-16 fighter operated by the service’s interceptor response unit. The first leak was found on Nord Stream 2 on Sep. 25, 2022, and two leaks on Nord Stream 1 the next day.
Following the incident, three exclusion zones, both aerial and naval, were established around the leaks.
The Danish Defence Command said in a statement;
‘Following the three gas leaks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, prohibition zones have been established around the leaks for the sake of the safety of ship and air traffic.
‘Nord Stream 1 has two leaks northeast of Bornholm, Nord Stream 2 has one leak south of Dueodde. The leaks were discovered by the Danish Defence F-16 interceptor response unit.
‘The defense is supporting in connection with the authorities’ efforts regarding the leaks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. The frigate Absalon and the pollution control vessel ship Gunnar Thorson are on their way to carry out water monitoring at the exclusion zones, and the Danish Defence are also supporting with a helicopter capacity. In addition, the patrol ship Rota was in the area last night.
‘The Danish Defense has no further comments at this time.’
A Danish EH101 Merlin search and rescue helicopter also recorded a footage from the bubbling waters above the leaks.
As #AW# contributor and world famous modern military aviation author Tom Cooper explains on Facebook, ‘Nord Stream 2 never became operational, while the Nord Stream 1 was shut down about a week ago, but still full of gas.
‘There seem to be three ‘holes’ on them, and massive amounts of gas are coming out.
‘Now…. back during the Cold War, NATO covered all of the North Atlantic (see: GIUK-Gap) the North Sea and the Baltic with networks of microphones. Back then, these were used to track Soviet subs. Since the 1990s, they were used to study sea life.
‘….and yesterday they recorded three detonations.
‘…which in turn means: this was an intentional sabotage.’
The two underwater pipelines that run from Russia to Germany to transport gas to Europe have been at the center of numerous controversies since the invasion of Ukraine.
According to Aerotime Hub, Swedish National Seismic Network lecturer Björn Lund told national TV channel SVT that on the day the first leak was found, measuring stations in both Sweden and Denmark registered strong underwater explosions.
Coincidentally, Denmark, Norway, and Poland inaugurated the Baltic Pipe, a gas pipeline linking Poland to Norway, on Sep. 27, 2022. The European Union hopes the new pipeline will mitigate the current energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine.
Photo by Forsvaret and Steve Lynes from Sandshurst, United Kingdom via Wikipedia